Reading about Percy Jackson
by Percabethlvrknowsall
Summary: Annabeth, Leo, Piper, Jason, the gods and various other characters read about Percy's life. Percy come in later. Rated T cause I'm paranoid and just in case. Let me know in the reviews(OR PM me) If u want me to bring in anybody else.PARTY PONIES!
1. 1 Prologue

Paste

**Disclaimer: All Percy Jackson characters and material belong to Rick Riordan**

During the winter solstice all the regular arguments were happening.

_Mother always liked you best._

_You have to eat more fiber._

_Air catastrophes are better than water ones._

_Can you stop having children?_

_Aphrodite likes me better._

_Hermes was surprisingly talking with Hestia._

_Why did Athens choose you over me?_

All was swell on Olympus until there was a flash and six teens, two mortals, and two babies appeared.

"What do you want?" said one of the teens who had startling gray eyes and long blonde curly hair. Another flash and a note and set of books appeared.

_Dear demigods, gods, mortals, and babies,_

_Hermes and I got bored and sent the demigods back into the future and sent two mortals with their children to read about a certain hero._

_The greatest god ever, Apollo._

_P.S. the demigods, mortals, and babies should introduce themselves._

_P.P.S the guests should be in no way harmed. That means you Zeus. _

_P.P.P.S. there will be more coming so make room._

"Well, who are you?" Zeus boomed.

"Annabeth Chase. Daughter of Athena and architect of Olympus. One of the Seven" Said the blonde girl.

A girl who looked like a rocker stepped up and said "Thalia Grace. Daughter of Zeus."

"Leo Valdez. Son of Hephaestus. One of the Seven." Said the elfish boy.

"Piper Mclean. Daughter of Aphrodite. One of the Seven."

"Jason Grace. Son of Jupiter. One of the Seven."

"Nico di Angelo. Son of Hades." **(A/N Poseidon, Hades, and Zeus already knew about Hades' and Zeus' kids.)**

"What are the books called?" Asked Athena.

"Their called Percy Jackson and the Olympians." Said Annabeth. When Annabeth saw his name, she became pained.

"Well, who will read first?" Asked Poseidon.

"I will." Replied Zeus.

your document here...


	2. Pre-Algebra teacher gets vaporized

**"I Accidentally Vaporize my Pre-Algebra Teacher,"** Zeus read.

"I'm already liking Percy." Said Leo with a chuckle.

"Are the chapters going to sound this weird?" Asked Piper.

"Probably. Knowing Percy he would create the funniest and stupidest titles." Replied Thalia.

**Look, I didn't want to be a half-blood.**

"Who does?" Muttered Nico.

**If you're reading this because you think you might be one, my advice is:**

"Run!" Yelled Thalia.

"Why?"

"Whenever Seaweed brain gives advice, it blows up in our faces." Replied Annabeth.

**Close this book right now. Believe whatever lies your mom or dad told you about your birth, and try to lead a normal life. Being a half-blood is dangerous. It's scary. Most of the time, it gets you killed in painful, nasty ways.** **If you're a normal kid, reading this because you think it's fiction, great. Read on. I envy you for being able to believe that none of this ever happened.** **But if you recognize yourself in these pages—if you feel something stirring inside—stop reading immediately. You might be one of us. And once you know that, it's only a matter of time before ****_they _****sense it too, and they'll come for you.**

"That's actually pretty good advice.'' Said Annabeth.

**Don't say I didn't warn you.**

"You didn't," Started Nico but then a knife whizzed right past his ear and he shut up.

**My name is Percy Jackson.**

"I thought it was," Came from Leo but then the glare from Annabeth and Thalia stopped him.

**I'm twelve years old. Until a ****_few _****months ago, I was a boarding student at Yancy Academy, a private school for troubled kids in upstate New York.**

**Am I a troubled kid?**

"YES," All the demigods who knew Percy yelled, besides Leo, Piper, Jason, and surprisingly Annabeth.

"Give him a break guys, if he wasn't the way he was, a lot of us wouldn't be here," Annabeth said in a quiet voice, which earned a hard stare from Athena who was wondering why her daughter would defend the boy.

_Maybe they're close. _She thought.

**Yeah. You could say that.**

"Wow, he even admits it," Nico laughed, while the others joined in.

**I could start at any point in my short miserable life to prove it, but things really started going bad last May, when our sixth-grade class took a field trip to Manhattan— twenty-eight mental-case kids and two teachers on a yellow school bus, heading to the Metropolitan Museum of Art to look at ancient Greek and Roman stuff.**

"Fun." Said Athena.

"Sounds pretty interesting," Annabeth said generally interested.

**I know—it sounds like torture.**

"Humph," Annabeth and Athena puffed annoyed.

**Most Yancy field trips were.**

**But Mr. Brunner, our Latin teacher, was leading this trip, so I had hopes.**

**Mr. Brunner was this middle-aged guy in a motorized wheelchair. He had thinning hair and a scruffy beard and a frayed tweed jacket, which always smelled like coffee. You wouldn't think he'd be cool, but he told stories and jokes and let us play games in class. He also had this awesome collection of Roman armor and weapons, so he was the only teacher whose class didn't put me to sleep.**

"Is that Chiron?" asked Piper.

"Yeah."

**I hoped the trip would be okay. At least, I hoped that for once I wouldn't get in trouble.** **Boy, was I wrong.** **See, bad things happen to me on field trips. Like at my fifth-grade school, when we went to the Saratoga battlefield, I had this accident with a Revolutionary War cannon. I wasn't aiming for the school bus, but of course I got expelled anyway.**

Hermes, Apollo, and Leo were on the floor holding their stomach while laughing uncontrollably.

"I think he's a son of Hermes, 'cause that would be an awesome prank," Apollo laughed.

**And before that, at my fourth-grade school, when we took a behind-the-scenes tour of the Marine World shark pool, I sort of hit the wrong lever on the catwalk and our class took an unplanned swim. And the time before that... Well, you get the idea.**

"No, not now," Apollo, Hermes, and Leo whined.

**This trip, I was determined to be good.**

**All the way into the city, I put up with Nancy Bobofit, the freckly, redheaded kleptomaniac girl, hitting my best friend Grover in the back of the head with chunks of peanut butter-and-ketchup sandwich.** **Grover was an easy target. He was scrawny. He cried when he got frustrated. He must've been held back several grades, because he was the only sixth grader with acne and the start of a wispy beard on his chin. On top of all that, he was crippled. He had a note excusing him from PE for the rest of his life because he had some kind of muscular disease in his legs. He walked funny, like every step hurt him, but don't let that fool you. You should've seen him run when it was enchilada day in the cafeteria.**

Thalia smacked him above the head. "Way to blow your cover."

"What," He shrugged. "They were really good.

**Anyway, Nancy Bobofit was throwing wads of sandwich that stuck in his curly brown hair, and she knew I couldn't do anything back to her because I was already on probation. The headmaster had threatened me with death by in-school suspension if anything bad, embarrassing, or even mildly entertaining happened on this trip.**

"Always the first to be blamed," Annabeth sighed.

**"I'm going to kill her," I mumbled.**

"Finally, some bloodshed," Ares smiled with his hands clutching his throne tightly.

**Grover tried to calm me down. "It's okay. I like peanut butter."** **He dodged another piece of Nancy's lunch.** **"That's it." I started to get up, but Grover pulled me back to my seat. "You're already on probation," he reminded me. "You know who'll get blamed if anything happens."** **Looking back on it, I wish I'd decked Nancy Bobofit right then and there.** ** In-school suspension would've been nothing compared to the mess I was about to get myself into.**

"Do you think he'll be okay," Annabeth whispered to Thalia.

It wasn't like her to act so worried about Percy, usually she was there to save his skid from getting hurt, but she didn't know how to react when he's in danger alone.

"It's Percy, Annie, the kids got more lives than a cat," Thalia reassured her best friend.

**Mr. Brunner led the museum tour.**

**He rode up front in his wheelchair, guiding us through the big echoey galleries, past marble statues and glass cases full of really old black-and-orange pottery.**

**It blew my mind that this stuff had survived for two thousand, three thousand years.**

"Longer," The gods said in unison

**He gathered us around a thirteen-foot-tall stone column with a big sphinx on the top, and started telling us how it was a grave marker, a ****_stele, _****for a girl about our age. He told us about the carvings on the sides. I was trying to listen to what he had to say, because it was kind of interesting, but everybody around me was talking, and every time I told them to shut up, the other teacher chaperone, Mrs. Dodds, would give me the evil eye.**

**Mrs. Dodds was this little math teacher from Georgia who always wore a black leather jacket, even though she was fifty years old. She looked mean enough to ride a Harley right into your locker. She had come to Yancy halfway through the year, when our last math teacher had a nervous breakdown.**

_Hmm. Why is Alecto following the boy?_ Hades thought.

**From her first day, Mrs. Dodds loved Nancy Bobofit and figured I was devil spawn. She would point her crooked finger at me and say, "Now, honey," real sweet, and I knew I was going to get after-school detention for a month.**

"Monster?" Almost everyone asked.

Annabeth nodded faintly.

**One time, after she'd made me erase answers out of old math workbooks until midnight, I told Grover I didn't think Mrs. Dodds was human. He looked at me, real serious, and said, "You're absolutely right."** **Mr. Brunner kept talking about Greek funeral art.**

**Finally, Nancy Bobofit snickered something about the naked guy on the stele, and I turned around and said, "Will you ****_shut up_****?"**

"Never did know when to keep his mouth shut," Thalia smiled remembering her cousin's big mouth.

**It came out louder than I meant it to.**

"Of course it did," Hera spoke for the first time.

**The whole group laughed. Mr. Brunner stopped his story.**

**"Mr. Jackson," he said, "did you have a comment?"**

**My face was totally red. I said, "No, sir."**

_He looked cute when he turned red_. Annabeth thought.

Aphrodite was busy filling her nails when she felt a wave of love course though her. She turned to the demigods who all had straight faces. _Hmm, one of these kids has a crush on Percy._

**Mr. Brunner pointed to one of the pictures on the stele. "Perhaps you'll tell us what this picture represents?**

**I looked at the carving, and felt a flush of relief, because I actually recognized it. "That's Kronos eating his kids, right?"**

The elder gods shuddered.

"Worst time of my life," Demeter said.

"For once I agree with her, father's stomach was a horrible place," Hades added.

"Cause the underworld is full of dandelions," Demeter shot back.

**"Yes," Mr. Brunner said, obviously not satisfied.**

**"And he ****_did _****this because ..."**

**"Well..." I racked my brain to remember. "Kronos was the king god,**

"WHAT," Zeus boomed. "That's an insult."

**and—"**

**"God?" Mr. Brunner asked.**

**"Titan," I corrected myself. **

"Better."

**"And ... he didn't trust his kids, who were the gods. So, um, Kronos ate them, right? But his wife hid baby Zeus, and gave Kronos a rock to eat instead.**

"Either father was incredibly stupid, blind, or Zeus resembles a rock," Hades snickered.

"HEY," Zeus shouted. "I don't look like a rock."

**And later, when Zeus grew up, he tricked his dad, Kronos, into barfing up his brothers and sisters—"**

**"Eeew!" said one of the girls behind me.**

"That was a terrible thing to be a part of," Hera said.

**"—and so there was this big fight between the gods and the Titans," I continued, "and the gods won."**

"One of the biggest wars in mankind, and he sums it up in a couple sentences," Jason pointed out.

"I don't think there is any other way to say it without hours of explanations," Zeus explained to his son.

**Some snickers from the group. Behind me, Nancy Bobofit mumbled to a friend, "Like we're going to use this in real life. Like it's going to say on our job applications, 'Please explain why Kronos ate his kids.'" "And why, Mr. Jackson," Brunner said, "to paraphrase Miss Bobofit's excellent question, does this matter in real life?"**

"Busted," Nico laughed.

**"Busted," Grover muttered.**

"I think like a goat," Nico exclaimed horrified.

**"Shut up," Nancy hissed, her face even brighter red than her hair.**

**At least Nancy got packed, too. Mr. Brunner was the only one who ever caught her saying anything wrong. He had radar ears.** **I thought about his question, and shrugged. "I don't know, sir."**

**"I see." Mr. Brunner looked disappointed. "Well, half credit, Mr. Jackson. Zeus did indeed feed Kronos a mixture of mustard and wine, which made him disgorge his other five children, who, of course, being immortal gods, had been living and growing up completely undigested in the Titan's stomach. The gods defeated their father, sliced him to pieces with his own scythe, and scattered his remains in Tartarus, the darkest part of the Underworld. On that happy note, it's time for lunch. Mrs. Dodds, would you lead us back outside?"**

"Way to switch topic Chiron," Apollo laughed.

**The class drifted off, the girls holding their stomachs, the guys pushing each other around and acting like doofuses.**

"Because they are," Artemis spat.

"Ah come on Sis," Apollo said grabbing her hand. "You gotta love some of us."

She twisted his hand and smiled at his obvious discomfort. "Wrong, and don't call me Sis."

**Grover and I were about to follow when Mr. Brunner said, "Mr. Jackson."**

**I knew that was coming.**

**I told Grover to keep going. Then I turned toward Mr. Brunner. "Sir?"**

**Mr. Brunner had this look that wouldn't let you go— intense brown eyes that could've been a thousand years old and had seen everything.**

"Could be right, and I should know, I'm the God of prophecies, and I see everything," Apollo said, before getting a smack in the back of the head from Artemis. "Ow, that hurt."

"Didn't see that coming, did you."

**"You must learn the answer to my question," Mr. Brunner told me.**

**"About the Titans?"**

**"About real life. And how your studies apply to it."**

**"Oh."**

"Not that answer he was looking for," Piper said.

**"What you learn from me," he said, "is vitally important. I expect you to treat it as such. I will accept only the best from you, Percy Jackson."**

**I wanted to get angry, this guy pushed me so hard.**

"It's for the best seaweed brain," Annabeth whispered.

**I mean, sure, it was kind of cool on tournament days, when he dressed up in a suit of Roman armor and shouted: "What ho!'" and challenged us, sword-point against chalk, to run to the board and name every Greek and Roman person who had ever ****_lived, _****and their mother, and what god they worshipped.**

**But Mr. Brunner expected me to be as good as everybody else, despite the fact that I have dyslexia and attention deficit disorder and I had never made above a C— in my life. No—he didn't expect me to be ****_as good; _****he expected me to be ****_better. _****And I just couldn't learn all those names and facts, much less spell them correctly.** **I mumbled something about trying harder, while Mr. Brunner took one long sad look at the stele, like he'd been at this girl's funeral.**

"Probably was," Hestia spoke from her hearth. "Chiron has seen many tragic things in his lifetime."

**He told me to go outside and eat my lunch.**

**The class gathered on the front steps of the museum, where we could watch the foot traffic along Fifth Avenue.**

**Overhead, a huge storm was brewing, with clouds blacker than I'd ever seen over the city. I figured maybe it was global warming or something, because the weather all across New York State had been weird since Christmas.**

"I wonder what has father in such a state," Athena thought out loud.

The gods looked at Zeus expecting to know the answer but he shrugged it off not knowing either.

**We'd had massive snow storms, flooding, wildfires from lightning strikes. I wouldn't have been surprised if this was a hurricane blowing in.**

"What are you guys fighting over now!" Hera exclaimed.

"Probably his fault," Poseidon muttered, which earned a glare from the king of the gods.

**Nobody else seemed to notice. Some of the guys were pelting pigeons with Lunchables crackers. Nancy Bobofit was trying to pickpocket something from a lady's purse, and, of course, Mrs. Dodds wasn't seeing a thing.**

"One of yours?" Artemis asked Hermes.

"Don't think so," Hermes replied.

**Grover and I sat on the edge of the fountain, away from the others. We thought that maybe if we did that, everybody wouldn't know we were from ****_that _****school—the school for loser freaks who couldn't make it elsewhere.**

"Not gonna happen," Nico joked, which earned a high five from Leo and another knife pass his ear.

**"Detention?" Grover asked.**

**"Nah," I said. "Not from Brunner. I just wish he'd lay off me sometimes. I mean—I'm not a genius."**

"Got that right," Thalia smiled.

Nico waited for her punishment, but it never came. _How come she could make fun of Percy?_

**Grover didn't say anything for a while. Then, when I thought he was going to give me some deep philosophical comment to make me feel better, he said, "Can I have your apple?"**

At that everybody was lying on the floor laughing.

**I didn't have much of an appetite, so I let him take it.**

**I watched the stream of cabs going down Fifth Avenue, and thought about my mom's apartment, only a little ways uptown from where we sat. I hadn't seen her since Christmas. I wanted so bad to jump in a taxi and head home. **

Hera glared at Ares and Hephaestus. "Why can't you be like him!"

"Maybe cause you threw me off Olympus," Hephaestus replied.

Hera quickly closed her mouth and realized he was right.

_I'm sorry._ She thought to her son.

_It's okay._ She heard Hephaestus think, which she shot a tiny smile in his direction.

**She'd hug me and be glad to see me, but she'd be disappointed, too. She'd send me right back to Yancy, remind me that I had to try harder, even if this was my sixth school in six years and I was probably going to be kicked out again. I wouldn't be able to stand that sad look she'd give me.**

"Boy cares for his mother," Artemis spoke, while Hera agreed.

**Mr. Brunner parked his wheelchair at the base of the handicapped ramp. He ate celery while he read a paperback novel. A red umbrella stuck up from the back of his chair, making it look like a motorized cafe table.**

"That's insane," Leo said with wide eyes. "I'm gonna make one when we get back."

Hephaestus smiled at his sons passions to build.

**I was about to unwrap my sandwich when Nancy Bobofit appeared in front of me with her ugly friends—I guess she'd gotten tired of stealing from the tourists—and dumped her half-eaten lunch in Grover's lap.**

Annabeth and Thalia gritted their teeth.

**"Oops." She grinned at me with her crooked teeth. Her freckles were orange, as if somebody had spray-painted her face with liquid Cheetos.**

**I tried to stay cool. The school counselor had told me a million times, "Count to ten, get control of your temper." But I was so mad my mind went blank. A wave roared in my ears.**

"POSEIDON!" Zeus and Hades shouted shaking Olympus.

"YOU BROKE THE OATH," Zeus yelled in Poseidon's face.

"As did you brother," Poseidon said calmly. "Twice." He pointed to Thalia and Jason who sat quietly as the brothers yelled at one another. "You don't see me biting off their heads."

Zeus, who still had lightning sparks flicking off him, pulled out his master bolt and aimed it straight at the middle of the room. A blast of energy shot out and a bright light ignited the middle of the room and a small boy appeared in the middle of the room in his crib sleeping.

"What is the meaning of this father," Athena spoke waking the young toddler.

Judging from his appearance, the boy was between 2 to 3 years old. He had jet black messy hair and sea green eyes. His tiny hands balanced his weight as he supported himself on the edge of the crib and stared at the head of the thrones where Zeus and Hera sat with Poseidon on the right of Zeus.

"Percy," Poseidon breathed.

"Yes, your son," Zeus spat. He aimed his master bolt at the child who starred with wide eyes. "I'll finish him off now so this never happens."

Another beam of energy shot out of his master bolt and energy seared through the air towards Percy. The demigods, who sat behind the toddler, yelled in protest, and Annabeth near tears.

Poseidon materialized in front of the blast and deflected it off with his trident. Steam was radiating off Poseidon as he pointed his trident towards the king of the gods.

"Attempt to harm my son again, and you'll have the biggest fight of your life Zeus," He sneered.

"You defy the king of the gods!"

Before Zeus could answer, Thalia stood by her uncle and blocked Percy's view. "You hurt him dad, and you'll lose me too."

"She's right Zeus," Hera spoke silently, shocking Thalia that she agreed with her. "The Fates specifically said not to harm the children or alter the future. Killing the boy would be wrong."

Zeus shot one last glare at Poseidon who still had his trident ready for a fight. "Fine, let the boy live."

Aphrodite squealed and ran off her throne with the sound of heals clicking in the background. She hurried over to Percy who was looking around and grabbed him out of his crib and held him against his hip.

"Well aren't you a little handsome boy," She cooed at him.

Percy starred into the eyes of the goddess of love and rested his hand against her cheek.

"Pretty," He spoke in his childish like voice.

Aphrodite squealed loving this kid even more every minute.

The demigods smiled at the interaction with Percy. Annabeth thought Percy was the cutest baby in the world, and even Thalia had to admit that he was a cute kid.

Percy shifted his gaze to Poseidon and smiled brightly at him. "Daddy!"

Poseidon smiled at Percy and grabbed his infant hand. "Hello Percy."

"I'm taking him alright Poseidon," Aphrodite said without waiting for an answer and taking Percy to her throne while he sat on her lap.

**I don't remember touching her, but the next thing I knew, Nancy was sitting on her butt in the fountain, screaming, "Percy pushed me!"**

**Mrs. Dodds materialized next to us.**

**Some of the kids were whispering: "Did you see—"**

**"—the water—"**

**"—like it grabbed her—"**

"Those are insane powers," Leo awed and looked at Percy who was playing with the goddess of love's hair.

Jason nodded. _Water powers do sound pretty cool._

**I didn't know what they were talking about. All I knew was that I was in trouble again.**

**As soon as Mrs. Dodds was sure poor little Nancy was okay, promising to get her a new shirt at the museum gift shop, etc., etc., Mrs. Dodds turned on me. There was a triumphant fire in her eyes, as if I'd done something she'd been waiting for all semester. "Now, honey—"**

**"I know," I grumbled. "A month erasing workbooks."**

"Never guess your punishment,"

**That wasn't the right thing to say.**

**"Come with me," Mrs. Dodds said.**

**"Wait!" Grover yelped. "It was me. ****_I _****pushed her."**

**I stared at him, stunned. I couldn't believe he was trying to cover for me. Mrs. Dodds scared Grover to death.**

**She glared at him so hard his whiskery chin trembled.**

**"I don't think so, Mr. Underwood," she said.**

**"But—"**

**"You—****_will_**—**stay—here."**

**Grover looked at me desperately.**

**"It's okay, man," I told him. "Thanks for trying."**

**"Honey," Mrs. Dodds barked at me. "****_Now_****."**

**Nancy Bobofit smirked.**

**I gave her my deluxe I'll-kill-you-later stare.**

"You don't want to be on the receiving end of that," Nico shuddered.

**Then I turned to face Mrs. Dodds, but she wasn't there. She was standing at the museum entrance, way at the top of the steps, gesturing impatiently at me to come on.**

**How'd she get there so fast?**

"Monster," Athena whispered.

The gods turned to Percy who had fallen asleep against Aphrodite. She held him tight worrying about the toddler.

**I have moments like that a lot, when my brain falls asleep or something, and the next thing I know I've missed something, as if a puzzle piece fell out of the universe and left me staring at the blank place behind it. The school counselor told me this was part of the ADHD, my brain misinterpreting things.**

**I wasn't so sure.**

**I went after Mrs. Dodds.**

**Halfway up the steps, I glanced back at Grover. He was looking pale, cutting his eyes between me and Mr. Brunner, like he wanted Mr. Brunner to notice what was going on, but Mr. Brunner was absorbed in his novel.**

**I looked back up. Mrs. Dodds had disappeared again. She was now inside the building, at the end of the entrance hall.**

**Okay, I thought. She's going to make me buy a new shirt for Nancy at the gift shop.**

**But apparently that wasn't the plan.**

"I feel a fight coming," Ares smirked rubbing his hands.

Poseidon glared at his nephew who immediately backed down.

**I followed her deeper into the museum. When I finally caught up to her, we were back in the Greek and Roman section.**

**Except for us, the gallery was empty.**

Athena gazed down to see Percy staring at her while leaning on her leg and reaching out to her.

She had the sudden urge to kick him off, but realized that he was just two years old. She turned to Poseidon who just nodded.

She reluctantly picked up the child and placed him on his lap.

"Hi," He said in a tiny shy voice.

Athena's heart melted when she saw his green eyes stare into her grey eyes. "Hello Perseus."

**Mrs. Dodds stood with her arms crossed in front of a big marble frieze of the Greek gods. She was making this weird noise in her throat, like growling.**

**Even without the noise, I would've been nervous. It's weird being alone with a teacher, especially Mrs. Dodds. Something about the way she looked at the frieze, as if she wanted to pulverize it...**

**"You've been giving us problems, honey," she said.**

**I did the safe thing. I said, "Yes, ma'am."**

"Wow, he's actually being polite," Thalia sounded surprised.

"Why's that surprising?" Piper asked.

"Percy's not known to hold his tongue," Nico explained. "I think he's ticked off more gods then Kronos."

**She tugged on the cuffs of her leather jacket. "Did you really think you would get away with it?"**

**The look in her eyes was beyond mad. It was evil.**

**She's a teacher, I thought nervously. It's not like she's going to hurt me.**

**I said, "I'll—I'll try harder, ma'am."**

**Thunder shook the building.**

A similar sound went through Olympus as Zeus turned to see Percy sitting on Athena's lap looking up at the ceiling looking for the lightning.

"More." Clapped Percy. Thunder boomed even louder and Percy started to shriek with laughter

**"We are not fools, Percy Jackson," Mrs. Dodds said. "It was only a matter of time before we found you out. Confess, and you will suffer less pain."**

"What's she talking about?" Artemis asked to no one in particular.

The three new demigods turned to the others who stayed quiet not wanting to spoil the story.

**I didn't know what she was talking about.**

**All I could think of was that the teachers must've found the illegal stash of candy I'd been selling out of my dorm room.**

Nico yet again fell out of his seat laughing.

"Gods, this kid is a gold mind," Leo panted.

**Or maybe they'd realized I got my essay on ****_Tom Sawyer _****from the Internet without ever reading the book and now they were going to take away my grade. Or worse, they were going to make me read the book.**

**"Well?" she demanded.**

**"Ma'am, I don't..."**

**"Your time is up," she hissed.**

**Then the weirdest thing happened. Her eyes began to glow like barbecue coals. Her fingers stretched, turning into talons. Her jacket melted into large, leathery wings. She wasn't human. She was a shriveled hag with bat wings and claws and a mouth full of yellow fangs, and she was about to slice me to ribbons.**

"HADES," Poseidon lunged off his throne and his hands went around his brother's throat.

The make gods, minus Zeus pulled the brothers apart and the demigods watched as Poseidon yelled.

"YOU SENT A FURY AFTER MY SON," He yelled. Percy started to cry from the loud noises, and Poseidon stopped immediately.

Athena, not sure what to do, was saved by Artemis who took Percy to her throne and settled him down.

The males in the room watched in awe as Percy settled down. Even the females were a little shocked, besides Annabeth who knew that Percy can make anyone fall in love with him.

_I know I am_. She thought.

**Then things got even stranger.**

**Mr. Brunner, who'd been out in front of the museum a minute before, wheeled his chair into the doorway of the gallery, holding a pen in his hand.**

"A pen?" Everyone who didn't know what Riptide was.

**"What ho, Percy!" he shouted, and tossed the pen through the air.**

**Mrs. Dodds lunged at me.**

**With a yelp, I dodged and felt talons slash the air next to my ear. I snatched the ballpoint pen out of the air, but when it hit my hand, it wasn't a pen anymore. It was a sword—Mr. Brunner's bronze sword, which he always used on tournament day.**

"Wicked," Leo awed.

**Mrs. Dodds spun toward me with a murderous look in her eyes.**

**My knees were jelly. My hands were shaking so bad I almost dropped the sword.**

"Wimp," Ares muttered, who was doused with water from head to toe.

**She snarled, "Die, honey!"**

"Enough with the honey," Thalia yelled.

**And she flew straight at me.**

**Absolute terror ran through my body. I did the only thing that came naturally: I swung the sword.**

"Naturally," Jason said, wondering how that was natural. Maybe for Romans who started at such a young age, but for someone who's new in the monster world, it's a little odd.

**The metal blade hit her shoulder and passed clean through her body as if she were made of water. ****_Hisss!_**

The gods stared at Percy who played with his fingers.

"The boys a natural," Hera spoke.

**Mrs. Dodds was a sand castle in a power fan. She exploded into yellow powder, vaporized on the spot, leaving nothing but the smell of sulfur and a dying screech and a chill of evil in the air, as if those two glowing red eyes were still watching me.**

**I was alone.**

**There was a ballpoint pen in my hand.**

**Mr. Brunner wasn't there. Nobody was there but me.**

"The mist is still affecting him," Athena pointed out.

"Hate that stuff," Piper grumbled low enough for only her to hear, but Jason heard anyway.

She looked up to see him staring back at her and when their eyes caught each other, they turned away blushing.

**My hands were still trembling. My lunch must've been contaminated with magic mushrooms or something.**

**Had I imagined the whole thing?**

"No Seaweed Brain," Annabeth spoke softly.

"Uh Annabeth your talking to a book," Thalia whispered in her ear.

She blushed and waved her mother to continue.

**I went back outside.**

**It had started to rain.**

**Grover was sitting by the fountain, a museum map tented over his head. Nancy Bobofit was still standing there, soaked from her swim in the fountain, grumbling to her ugly friends. When she saw me, she said, "I hope Mrs. Kerr whipped your butt."**

"Who?" Poseidon spoke for the first time forgetting his anger towards Hades.

**I said, "Who?"**

"Like father like son," Zeus grumbled, while Poseidon shot Percy a wink who giggled in response.

**"Our ****_teacher._** **Duh!"**

**I blinked. We had no teacher named Mrs. Kerr. I asked Nancy what she was talking about.**

**She just rolled her eyes and turned away.**

**I asked Grover where Mrs. Dodds was.**

**He said, "Who?"**

**But he paused first, and he wouldn't look at me, so I thought he was messing with me.**

**"Not funny, man," I told him. "This is serious."**

**Thunder boomed overhead.**

"What's got you so ticked off dad?" Jason asked.

Zeus shrugged while Athena's mind raced for an explanation.

**I saw Mr. Brunner sitting under his red umbrella, reading his book, as if he'd never moved.**

**I went over to him.**

**He looked up, a little distracted. "Ah, that would be my pen. Please bring your own writing utensil in the future, Mr. Jackson."**

**I handed Mr. Brunner his pen. I hadn't even realized I was still holding it.**

**"Sir," I said, "where's Mrs. Dodds?"**

**He stared at me blankly. "Who?"**

"Look at him go," Hermes awed.

**"The other chaperone. Mrs. Dodds. The pre-algebra teacher."**

**He frowned and sat forward, looking mildly concerned. "Percy, there is no Mrs. Dodds on this trip. As far as I know, there has never been a Mrs. Dodds at Yancy Academy. Are you feeling all right?"**

"That's it," Athena finished.

"Poor boy," Hestia said. "So much must be going through his head."

"Alright whose next?" Athena asked.

"WAIT," Zeus boomed. "I want to know why I'm angry."

Thalia shook her head and walked up to Athena. "Sorry dad, but no spoilers."

She grabbed the book and opened it up to the second chapter…

here...


	3. 3 Socks that show death

**I don't own Percy Jackson.**

**Reply to MiraSaya16: What was supposed to happen was that Percy as a baby gets summoned by Zeus. Annabeth baby comes in later. Sorry about the confusion.**

**Reply to ShimmerDaisyface: Thanx!**

**I'll try to update almost everyday.**

* * *

"**Three Old Ladies Knit the Socks of Death,"** Thalia read.

"Is Percy always this optimistic?" Asked Apollo.

**I was used to the occasional weird experience, but usually they were over quickly.**

"He thought that was weird? I hope he knows things get even weirder." Said Thalia.

**This twenty-four/seven hallucination was more than I could handle. For the rest of the school year, the entire campus seemed to be playing some kind of trick on me. **

"That would honestly be an amazing prank," Hermes awed.

"OW! What was that for?"

"Because you're an idiot." Said Artemis with a smug smile.

**The students acted as if they were completely and totally convinced that Mrs. Kerr—a perky blond woman whom I'd never seen in my life until she got on our bus at the end of the field trip—had been our pre-algebra teacher since Christmas.**

**Every so often I would spring a Mrs. Dodds reference on somebody, just to see if I could trip them up, but they would stare at me like I was psycho.**

Everyone snickered at that.

"Guy is psycho," Nico laughed remembering his cousin.

"Boys are psycho," Artemis grumbled.

"HEY," The male population yelled excluding Percy who was perched on Hera's lap clapping his hands in delight over the male's outburst.

**It got so I almost believed them—Mrs. Dodds had never existed.**

**Almost.**

"15 drachmas it's Grover's fault," Hermes bet with Apollo.

"Deal," Apollo shook his head.

**But Grover couldn't fool me.**

"BURN," Hermes shouted. "Pay up!"

Apollo reluctantly paid.

**When I mentioned the name Dodds to him, he would hesitate, and then claim she didn't exist. But I knew he was lying.**

**Something was going on. Something **_**had **_**happened at the museum.**

"Yeah, you fought a monster," Nico said. "Get used to it."

Poseidon looked on with a worried face at his small son who was babbling at Hera who seemed quite fond of his son.

**I didn't have much time to think about it during the days, but at night, visions of Mrs. Dodds with talons and leathery wings would wake me up in a cold sweat.**

"Poor child," Hestia whispered.

**The freak weather continued, which didn't help my mood. One night, a thunderstorm blew out the windows in my dorm room. **

"You're really out to get him huh _brother_," Poseidon spat.

**A few days later, the biggest tornado ever spotted in the Hudson Valley touched down only fifty miles from Yancy Academy. One of the current events we studied in social studies class was the unusual number of small planes that had gone down in sudden squalls in the Atlantic that year.**

"Whatever has me annoyed must be a good reason," Zeus grumbled.

"Yes but killing innocent people will not solve anything father," Athena tried to sooth her father.

**I started feeling cranky and irritable most of the time. My grades slipped from Ds to Fs.**

"Good Gods," Athena stuttered with a hand over her heart. She peeled her eyes over at Percy who was still motioning his fingers in front of Hera's face. "Perseus!"

The toddler turned to Athena and smiled brightly.

**I got into more fights with Nancy Bobofit and her friends. I was sent out into the hallway in almost every class.**

"With good reason. I'd probably throw him out the window," Thalia smirked evilly.

**Finally, when our English teacher, Mr. Nicoll, asked me for the millionth time why I was too lazy to study for spelling tests, I snapped. I called him an old sot. **

Annabeth and Athena started to laugh quietly as the rest wondered what was so funny.

Annabeth noticed the glances. "It means an old drunk."

**I wasn't even sure what it meant, but it sounded good.**

"Hey Apollo," Artemis smiled sweetly.

"Yeah," He said

"You act like an old sot," She replied casually. The room erupted into laughs while Apollo pouted.

**The headmaster sent my mom a letter the following week, making it official: I would not be invited back next year to Yancy Academy.**

**Fine, I told myself. Just fine.**

**I was homesick.**

"Baby," Ares muttered.

"Wouldn't talk Ares," Hera said. "You still live on Olympus with your parents."

**I wanted to be with my mom in our little apartment on the Upper East Side, even if I had to go to public school and put up with my obnoxious stepfather and his stupid poker parties.**

"Paul didn't seem like a gambler," Nico scratched his head in confusion.

"This was before Paul," Annabeth explained. "His first stepfather."

Annabeth's eyes darkened at the mention of Gabe.

"Who's Paul?" Poseidon asked curiously.

Aphrodite squealed happily. "Ohh, Poseidon still loves her!"

Poseidon smiled sheepishly while the male gods gagged in response.

"ENOUGH," Athena shouted. Her cheeks were red at the mention of Poseidon loving a…mortal.

Everyone instantly stopped laughing and Thalia turned back to the book.

Aphrodite still had a smile on her face and quietly leaned onto Athena's throne and whispered in her ear, "Green is not your color Athena."

"Shut up," She whispered harshly. _I am not jealous of the no good fish faced beautifully eyed stubborn man. _

**And yet... there were things I'd miss at Yancy. The view** **of the woods outside my dorm window, the Hudson River in the distance, the smell of pine trees. I'd miss Grover, who'd been a good friend,**

"No it's me," Annabeth argued.

"You're different," Nico said casually, but immediately regretted the words once he saw the red faced Annabeth and confused face from Athena.

"Different?" Aphrodite repeated sweetly. "As in…"

"NOT THAT," Athena shouted. She turned to her daughter who was blushing furiously. "Please explain daughter."

"Uh…what he means is…," Annabeth scratched her head wondering how a child of Athena could be at a loss for words. "Uh…I'm his best friend out of the girls at camp."

Athena nodded, but still didn't like the fact that her daughter was friends with a sea spawn, even though little Percy was cute as a button.

Aphrodite frowned sadly but was still convinced that someone had feelings for Percy.

Annabeth sighed in relief before Thalia whispered in her ear.

"Of course you're his best friend that's a girl; any other girl that would pass a twenty foot radius near him would be at the mercy of your dagger."

Annabeth blushed but didn't deny a thing remembering the Drew incident. The nerve that little skank had.

**even if he was a little strange.**

"I have to show Grover this book." Said Annabeth while laughing.

**I worried how he'd survive next year without me.**

"Concerned little boy aren't you," Hera cooed at Percy.

Percy stared at her blankly before smiling.

**I'd miss Latin class, too—Mr. Brunner's crazy tournament days and his faith that I could do well.**

**As exam week got closer, Latin was the only test I studied for.**

"Huh, who knew Percy would ever study for something?" Nico pointed out.

"Good," Athena approved. She gave a small wink at Percy who giggled in response. "Everyone starts somewhere."

Annabeth eyed baby Percy and wondered if maybe breaking the ice about her relationship with Percy would be best with the baby in her hands.

_Mom sure does have a soft spot for him!_

**I hadn't forgotten what Mr. Brunner had told me about this subject being life-and-death for me. I wasn't sure why, but I'd started to believe him.**

"Good," Poseidon smiled, knowing his son would at least be in the proper state of mind.

**The evening before my final, I got so frustrated I threw the **_**Cambridge Guide to Greek Mythology **_**across my dorm room. **

"Idiot," Athena muttered. "No appreciation for literature.

"No one appreciates literature like you do," Apollo whined.

**Words had started swimming off the page, circling my head, the letters doing one-eighties as if they were riding skateboards. There was no way I was going to remember the difference between Chiron and Charon,**

"He does now," Annabeth said together.

"Why?" Poseidon asked horrified, while Hades raised an eyebrow at the mention of Charon.

"Underworld," She answered simply.

**or Polydictes and Polydeuces. And conjugating those Latin verbs? Forget it.**

"I'm great at Latin verbs," Jason said casually.

He remembered that he had to be good at Latin verbs or else Lupa would claw his face out.

"Of course a Roman is good at Latin verbs," Annabeth said with an obvious tone. "We're hard wired for ancient Greek."

**I paced the room, feeling like ants were crawling around inside my shirt.**

**I remembered Mr. Brunner's serious expression, his thousand-year-old eyes. **_**I will accept only the best from you, Percy Jackson.**_

**I took a deep breath. I picked up the mythology book.**

"See Athena, Perce is learning," Apollo gestured to the book.

"Perce?" Hephaestus repeated.

"Yeah we're buddies," Apollo smiled brightly. "Watch."

Apollo quickly walked up to Hera's throne and took his cousin lightly into his hands and smiled a blinding light.

Percy immediately started to cry and the God of Prophecies was startled that someone so small can make so much noise.

"God of Prophecies and Poetry," Artemis yelled over Percy's cries. "Try God of Idiocy. Calm him down."

"How?" Apollo asked lifting Percy above his head to look under at his butt. "There isn't a switch."

"Moron," Athena whispered. "Give him here."

Apollo gladly handed Percy over before being smacked by Aphrodite, sprayed by Poseidon, and punched by Artemis.

Athena quickly hurried Percy over to the demigods sitting area and snapped her fingers. A small children's pool appeared at the feet of the teens and she quickly lowered Percy into the water while lifting his shirt off.

"There, he's in his element," She smiled as his cries ceased.

Everyone in the throne room watched as Percy sat in the water laughing and splashing in his own little world.

Annabeth, who watched with wide eyes as her miniature boyfriend started to play in the water, thought of a better idea and quickly whispered it to Poseidon who was already showing Percy water tricks.

"Great idea," He smiled as he summoned a recently born hippocampi into the water. "Now he has a friend."

Percy, who stared wide eyed at the creature, hastily enveloped it into a hug and started to laugh as the hippocampi squealed in delight.

"Okay, zoos over, back to the book," Zeus said annoyed, although the sight of his nephew playing in the water was quite humorous.

**I'd never asked a teacher for help before. Maybe if I talked to Mr. Brunner, he could give me some pointers. At least I could apologize for the big fat F I was about to score on his exam. I didn't want to leave Yancy Academy with him thinking I hadn't tried.**

"Aw... Percy wants to impress his teacher," Leo teased.

"Shut it repair boy." Piper smacked Leo in the back of the head.

**I walked downstairs to the faculty offices. Most of them were dark and empty, but Mr. Brunner's door was ajar, light from his window stretching across the hallway floor.**

**I was three steps from the door handle when I heard voices inside the office. Mr. Brunner asked a question. A voice that was definitely Grover's said,**

_**"...**_ **worried about Percy, sir."**

"We all are," Annabeth whispered as she watched Percy attempt to ride the hippocampi in the shallow water.

**I froze.**

**I'm not usually an eavesdropper,**

"Riiiight, and I'm a satyr," Thalia's voice dripped with sarcasm.

**but I dare you to try not listening if you hear your best friend talking about you to an adult.**

"The child as a valid point," Demeter said. "Though he wouldn't be up so late if he had enough fiber in his system."

"I think maybe you've had _too_ much fiber," Hades said as the elder Gods started to laugh at their sister.

"Good point brother, Demeter, Goddess of Fiber," Zeus smiled loving the look on Demeter's face.

"Better then God of Theater, Mr. Dramatic," Demeter shot back which earned a laugh from the other gods.

**I inched closer.**

**"... alone this summer," Grover was saying. "I mean, a Kindly One in the **_**school**_**! Now that we know for sure, and **_**they **_**know too—"**

**"We would only make matters worse by rushing him," Mr. Brunner said. "We need the boy to mature more."**

"I think if we waited on Percy to mature more, we'd be as old as the gods," Thalia joked.

**"But he may not have time. The summer solstice dead line— **_**"**_

**"Will have to be resolved without him, Grover. Let him enjoy his ignorance while he still can."**

**"Sir, he **_**saw **_**her... ."**

**"His imagination," Mr. Brunner insisted. "The Mist over the students and staff will be enough to convince him of that."**

**"Sir, I ... I can't fail in my duties again." Grover's voice was choked with emotion. "You know what that would mean."**

**"You haven't failed, Grover," Mr. Brunner said kindly. "I should have seen her for what she was. Now let's just worry about keeping Percy alive until next fall—"**

**The mythology book dropped out of my hand and hit the floor with a thud.**

"There goes his chance as an elite thief," Hermes sighed.

**Mr. Brunner went silent.**

**My heart hammering, I picked up the book and backed down the hall.**

"And yet he can follow rule 27." Hermes said.

**A shadow slid across the lighted glass of Brunner's office door, the shadow of something much taller than my wheelchair-bound teacher, holding something that looked suspiciously like an archer's bow.**

"Out of all the intelligent minds out there, why on earth would Chiron be in his true form surrounded by mortals," Athena asked to no one in particular.

**I opened the nearest door and slipped inside.**

**A few seconds later I heard a slow **_**clop-clop-clop, **_**like muffled wood blocks, then a sound like an animal snuffling right outside my door. A large, dark shape paused in front of the glass, and then moved on.**

**A bead of sweat trickled down my neck.**

**Somewhere in the hallway, Mr. Brunner spoke. "Nothing," he murmured. "My nerves haven't been right since the winter solstice."**

**"Mine neither," Grover said. "But I could have sworn ..."**

**"Go back to the dorm," Mr. Brunner told him. "You've got a long day of exams tomorrow."**

**"Don't remind me."**

**The lights went out in Mr. Brunner's office.**

**I waited in the dark for what seemed like forever.**

**Finally, I slipped out into the hallway and made my way back up to the dorm.**

**Grover was lying on his bed, studying his Latin exam notes like he'd been there all night.**

**"Hey," he said, bleary-eyed. "You going to be ready for this test?"**

"Of course not, haven't you ever noticed his marks," Annabeth asked.

**I didn't answer.**

**"You look awful." He frowned. "Is everything okay?"**

**"Just... tired."**

**I turned so he couldn't read my expression, and started getting ready for bed.**

"Well that's useless, doesn't the brat know that satyrs can read emotions," Dionysus grumbled from his throne.

**I didn't understand what I'd heard downstairs. I wanted to believe I'd imagined the whole thing.**

**But one thing was clear: Grover and Mr. Brunner were talking about me behind my back. They thought I was in some kind of danger.**

**The next afternoon, as I was leaving the three-hour Latin exam,**

Everybody turned around at the sound of a heavy fall. They all saw Leo unconcious.

"He just passed out at the sound of three hour Latin exam." Said Piper.

**my eyes swimming with all the Greek and Roman names I'd misspelled, Mr. Brunner called me back inside.**

**For a moment, I was worried he'd found out about my eavesdropping the night before, but that didn't seem to be the problem.**

**"Percy," he said. "Don't be discouraged about leaving Yancy. It's ... it's for the best."**

"Not really laying it out well Chiron," Piper noticed.

**His tone was kind, but the words still embarrassed me. Even though he was speaking quietly, the other kids finishing the test could hear. Nancy Bobofit smirked at me and made sarcastic little kissing motions with her lips.**

"Humph!" Annabeth glared at the book, which Aphrodite quickly saw and smiled knowingly.

"Why so angry Annabeth?" The Goddess of Love asked innocently which earned a glare from Athena.

Annabeth turned beat red. "Uh…she…uh made fun of him and…" She stuttered while giving Thalia a pleading look.

"Annabeth is very territorial about her friends," Thalia summed up.

The two friends smiled while Aphrodite pouted.

**I mumbled, "Okay, sir."**

**"I mean ..." Mr. Brunner wheeled his chair back and forth, like he wasn't sure what to say. "This isn't the right place for you. It was only a matter of time."**

**My eyes stung.**

"Wimp," Ares whispered under his breath, which didn't go unnoticed by Poseidon, which earned a cold shower for the God of War.

**Here was my favorite teacher, in front of the class, telling me I couldn't handle it. After saying he believed in me all year, now he was telling me I was destined to get kicked out.**

**"Right," I said, trembling.**

**"No, no," Mr. Brunner said. "Oh, confound it all. What I'm trying to say ... you're not normal, Percy. That's nothing to be—"**

**"Thanks," I blurted. "Thanks a lot, sir, for reminding me."**

Ares thought about saying something but thought better with the tense atmosphere.

"Not nice to hear someone say stuff like that, when not many people believe in you," Annabeth noticed. The demigods agreed knowing how hard life was in school.

**"Percy—"**

**But I was already gone.**

**On the last day of the term, I shoved my clothes into my suitcase.**

**The other guys were joking around, talking about their vacation plans. One of them was going on a hiking trip to Switzerland. Another was cruising the Caribbean for a month. They were juvenile delinquents, like me, but they were **_**rich **_**juvenile delinquents. Their daddies were executives, or ambassadors, or celebrities. I was a nobody, from a family of nobodies.**

"Nobodies huh little guy," Poseidon smiled at his son who was at the edge of the pool near Annabeth's feet.

"Maybe his father, but defiantly not his uncle," Zeus exclaimed.

That earned Zeus a wave of freezing cold water.

"Don't look at me." Said Poseidon.

"Percy's already developing his powers." Said Artemis in awe.

**They asked me what I'd be doing this summer and I told them I was going back to the city.**

**What I didn't tell them was that I'd have to get a summer job walking dogs or selling magazine subscriptions, and spend my free time worrying about where I'd go to school in the fall.**

**"Oh," one of the guys said. "That's cool."**

**They went back to their conversation as if I'd never existed.**

"How mean," Aphrodite said wiping a small tear. "This boy is almost as precious as chocolate."

"Boys are mean," Artemis concluded. Little Percy, stared up at the Goddess of the Hunt as if understanding her point. "Well, almost all boys," She smiled as he smiled back before playing in the water again.

**The only person I dreaded saying good-bye to was Grover, but as it turned out, I didn't have to. He'd booked a ticket to Manhattan on the same Greyhound as I had,**

"I'd say Grover has the potential for full on stalker!" Said Hermes.

_Some things never change. _The demigods thought.

**so there we were, together again, heading into the city.**

**During the whole bus ride, Grover kept glancing nervously down the aisle, watching the other passengers. It occurred to me that he'd always acted nervous and fidgety when we left Yancy, as if he expected something bad to happen.**

**Before, I'd always assumed he was worried about getting teased. But there was nobody to tease him on the Greyhound.**

**Finally I couldn't stand it anymore.**

**I said, "Looking for Kindly Ones?"**

**Grover nearly jumped out of his seat. "Wha—what do you mean?"**

**I confessed about eavesdropping on him and Mr. Brunner the night before the exam.**

**Grover's eye twitched. "How much **_**did **_**you hear?"**

**"Oh ... not much. What's the summer solstice dead-line?"**

**He winced. "Look, Percy ... I was just worried for you, see? I mean, hallucinating about demon math teachers …"**

"Demon math teachers," Nico chuckled.

**"Grover—"**

**"And I was telling Mr. Brunner that maybe you were overstressed or something, because there was no such person as Mrs. Dodds, and ..."**

**"Grover, you're a really, really bad liar."**

"Couldn't have said it better myself," Hermes smiled.

**His ears turned pink.**

**From his shirt pocket, he fished out a grubby business card. "Just take this, okay? In case you need me this summer.**

**The card was in fancy script, which was murder on my dyslexic eyes, but I finally made out something like:**

"Fancy script?" Athena asked Dionysus who was busy playing on his game boy.

"Huh," He looked up. "Oh, the script…I like watching them suffer," He smiled evilly before turning back to his game.

_**Grover Underwood**_

_**Keeper**_

_**Half-Blood Hill**_

_**Long Island, New York**_

_**(800)**_ _**009-0009**_

**"What's Half—"**

**"Don't say it aloud!" he yelped. "That's my, um ... summer address."**

**My heart sank. Grover had a summer home. I'd never considered that his family might be as rich as the others at Yancy.**

**"Okay," I said glumly. "So, like, if I want to come visit your mansion."**

**He nodded. "Or...or if you need me."**

**"Why would I need you?"**

"Harsh," Piper mumbled.

**It came out harsher than I meant it to.**

"Look at that Pipes, you think like him," Leo pointed out, which made Piper blush, much to the annoyance of Jason.

_Somebody likes Piper t_hought Aphrodite.

**Grover blushed right down to his Adam's apple. "Look, Percy, the truth is, I—I kind of have to protect you."**

**I stared at him.**

**All year long, I'd gotten in fights, keeping bullies away from him. I'd lost sleep worrying that he'd get beaten up next year without me.**

"You are a noble friend Perseus," Hestia smiled at Percy who smiled back.

"The best," Annabeth mumbled with teary eyes.

Percy quickly spun his head and reached his hands out for Annabeth who gladly picked him up.

"Hey Seaweed Brain," She smiled happily at him as he got comfortable in the crook of her neck.

**And here he was acting like he was the one who defended **_**me.**_

**"Grover," I said, "What exactly are you protecting me from?"**

**There was a huge grinding noise under our feet. Black smoke poured from the dashboard and the whole bus filled with a smell like rotten eggs.**

**The driver cursed and steered the Greyhound over to the side of the highway.**

**After a few minutes clanking around in the engine compartment, the driver announced that we'd all have to get off. Grover and I filed outside with everybody else.**

**We were on a stretch of country road—no place you'd notice if you didn't break down there. On our side of the highway was nothing but maple trees and litter from passing cars. On the other side, across four lanes of asphalt shimmering with afternoon heat, was an old-fashioned fruit stand.**

"I could really use some−"

"HURRY CONTIUNE," Hades yelled cutting of Demeter.

**The stuff on sale looked really good: heaping boxes of blood red cherries and apples, walnuts and apricots, jugs of cider in a claw-foot tub full of ice**_**. **_**There were no customers, just three old ladies sitting in rocking chairs in the shade of a maple tree, knitting the biggest pair of socks I'd ever seen.**

_What didn't Percy and Grover tell me._

**I mean these socks were the size of sweaters, but they were clearly socks. The lady on the right knitted one of them. The lady on the left knitted the other. The lady in the middle held an enormous basket of electric-blue yarn.**

**All three women looked ancient, with pale faces wrinkled like fruit leather, silver hair tied back in white bandannas, bony arms sticking out of bleached cotton dresses.**

"THE FATES," Poseidon yelled. "Oh no no no no…"

Poseidon bowed his head knowing his son was in trouble. Zeus, not knowing what to do, uncharacteristically tapped his brother's shoulder for comfort.

Percy, unaware to everyone's tense mood, was nearly strangled by Annabeth as she hugged her arms around his tiny waist and rested her chin above his head.

"Why didn't you tell me?" She whispered in his ear shedding a tear.

**The weirdest thing was, they seemed to be looking right at me.**

Athena watched her daughter silently cry as she held onto Percy's tiny body for dear life.

_They must be great friends to one another. _She thought.

**I looked over at Grover to say something about this and saw that the blood had drained from his face. His nose was twitching.**

**"Grover?" I said. "Hey, man—"**

**"Tell me they're not looking at you. They are, aren't they?"**

**"Yeah. Weird, huh? You think those socks would fit me?"**

"For once, this is the wrong time to joke," Hermes muttered.

**"Not funny, Percy. Not funny at all."**

**The old lady in the middle took out a huge pair of scissors—gold and silver, long-bladed, like shears. I heard Grover catch his breath.**

**"We're getting on the bus," he told me. "Come on."**

**"What?" I said. "It's a thousand degrees in there."**

**"Come on!'" He pried open the door and climbed inside, but I stayed back.**

**Across the road, the old ladies were still watching me. The middle one cut the yarn, and I swear I could hear that **_**snip **_**across four lanes of traffic.**

Most people caught their breath.

**Her two friends balled up the electric-blue socks, leaving me wondering who they could possibly be for—Sasquatch or Godzilla.**

"Only you would say that," Annabeth smiled sadly at Percy who was playing with her hair.

**At the rear of the bus, the driver wrenched a big chunk of smoking metal out of the engine compartment. The bus shuddered, and the engine roared back to life.**

**The passengers cheered.**

**"Darn right!" yelled the driver. He slapped the bus with his hat. "Everybody back on board!"**

**Once we got going, I started feeling feverish, as if I'd caught the flu.**

"Why him?" Poseidon said sadly. He turned to his fellow gods with a frown etched on his face. "Why any of them? Are kids should not be able to deal with things like this."

The gods who had children lowered their heads feeling the meaning of Poseidon's words. Even Zeus stared at his daughter and son and felt scared for their lives.

**Grover didn't look much better. He was shivering and his teeth were chattering.**

**"Grover?"**

**"Yeah?"**

**"What are you not telling me?"**

"Everything," Annabeth broke the silence.

**He dabbed his forehead with his shirt sleeve. "Percy, what did you see back at the fruit stand?"**

**"You mean the old ladies? What is it about them, man? They're not like ... Mrs. Dodds, are they?"**

"Worse young hero, much worse," Hades said in a normal tone.

**His expression was hard to read, but I got the feeling that the fruit-stand ladies were something much, much worse than Mrs. Dodds. He said, "Just tell me what you saw."**

**"The middle one took out her scissors, and she cut the yarn."**

**He closed his eyes and made a gesture with his fingers that might've been crossing himself, but it wasn't. It was something else, something almost—older.**

"Observant," Piper and Jason said at the same time causing another round of blushes.

_Get it together Piper, he probably has a girlfriend back home. _Piper thought.

Aphrodite smiled at her daughter knowingly. _Don't worry sweetie, it is I who decide what kind of love life people have._

Piper blushed at her mother who was probably the worst, yet best, person to talk to about love.

Jason watched as Piper and her mother look at one another and then notice Piper's cheeks turn slightly red. _God she's hot. Wow…where did that come from? _

**He said, "You saw her snip the cord."**

**"Yeah. So?" But even as I said it, I knew it was a big deal.**

"Huge deal lad," Hephaestus said.

**"This is not happening," Grover mumbled. He started chewing at his thumb. "I don't want this to be like the last time."**

**"What last time?"**

**"Always sixth grade. They never get past sixth."**

**"Grover," I said, because he was really starting to scare me. "What are you talking about?"**

**"Let me walk you home from the bus station. Promise me."**

**This seemed like a strange request to me, but I promised he could.**

**"Is this like a superstition or something?" I asked.**

**No answer.**

**"Grover—that snipping of the yarn. Does that mean somebody is going to die?"**

'Not bad for someone who doesn't know anything about his actual background,' Jason thought. 'Instincts like that will help at the Roman camp.'

**Again everyone shivered.**

**He looked at me mournfully, like he was already picking the kind of flowers I'd like best on my coffin.**

"Time for lunch." Said Zeus.

* * *

**PLS Review. Reviews help me write. If you have ideas for anything, let me know.**


	4. 4 Lunch

**All P.J characters belong to R.R.**

**Thanks to all who reviewed!**

* * *

Annabeth and Thalia ate lunch together and talked about when Percy would come back. They didn't want to think about if he would come back. Leo, Jason, Nico, and Piper ate lunch near Annabeth and Thalia. Nico was explaining MythoMagic to Leo while Jason and Piper were talking about random things. Piper knew that Jason liked her but didn't know what she should do. Jason knew Piper liked him but didn't know how to tell her that he liked her. Baby Percy was in the pool playing in the water when there was a bright light and Sally came in.

"There you are Percy. I turn my back for one second and then you disappear." Sally said frantically.

It was then that Sally noticed Poseidon.

"Hello Sally."

"Hello." Sally said blushing madly.

"we're reading about what happens to Percy in the fture. Care to join us?"

"Of course."

* * *

**I just got Mark of Athena and want to do another series where they read about HoO. I don't want to type out everything in every chapter. What should I do? Let me know.**


	5. 5 Grover has no pants

**Will never own Percy J.**

**Thanks for reviewing! Here's another update.**

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"Who wants to read?" Asked Thalia.

Before anybody could reply a flash in the room came.

"Who are you?" Asked Zeus.

"Grover Underwood. Lord of the Wild and Seeker." Replied Grover.

"How about we have Grover read?" Asked Annabeth.

"Read what?"

"Read about Percy's adventures."

"Cool. I'll read."

"**Grover Unexpectedly Loses his Pants,"** Grover read.

"When do I lose my pants?" Grover asked the book.

**Confession time: I ditched Grover as soon as we got to the bus terminal.**

"That stupid. He should have waited for Grover." Said Athena.

"Percy doesn't think a lot." Said Annabeth.

**I know, I know. It was rude.**

"Well at least the boy knows," Hera nodded in a approval towards Percy.

**But Grover was freaking me out, looking at me like I was a dead man, muttering "Why does this always happen?" and "Why does it always have to he sixth grade?"**

"I don't blame you Perce. I would've ditched him too." Said Nico.

**Whenever he got upset, Grover's bladder acted up, so I wasn't surprised when, as soon as we got off the bus, he made me promise to wait for him, then made a beeline for the restroom.**

**Instead of waiting, I got my suitcase, slipped outside, and caught the first taxi uptown.**

**"East One-hundred-and-fourth and First," I told the driver.**

"Prank time!" Yelled Hermes.

"Not on my watch." Said Artemis and Sally who had been very quiet.

**A word about my mother, before you meet her.**

"One word to describe her….um…awesome," Thalia smiled.

"Amazing," Annabeth through in.

"Kind," Nico and Poseidon said at the same time.

Sally was blushing madly.

**Her name is Sally Jackson and she's the best person in the world, which just proves my theory that the best people have the rottenest luck.**

"Well that seems highly unfair," Hera said.

**Her own parents died in a plane crash when she was five, and she was raised by an uncle who didn't care much about her. **

"WHY!" Yelled Hera.

"I was grumpy." Zeus replied.

"That's not an excuse to shoot down an airplane!"

"Whatever."

**She wanted to be a novelist, so she spent high school working to save enough money for a college with a good creative-writing program. Then her uncle got cancer, and she had to quit school her senior year to take care of him. After he died, she was left with no money, no family, and no diploma.**

Hera was shaking her head at Zeus.

**The only good break she ever got was meeting my dad.**

"That's so beautiful," Aphrodite cried.

"How's is that your mom," Leo whispered to Piper. "I mean, the chances of you being like her are the chances that Demeter and Hades get along, or you and Jason hooking up!"

"Excuse me."

"Nothing."

**I don't have any memories of him, just this sort of warm glow, maybe the barest trace of his smile. My mom doesn't like to talk about him because **_**it **_**makes her sad. She has no pictures.**

"I think she still loves you Poseidon," Hestia told her brother.

**See, they weren't married. She told me he was rich and important, and their relationship was a secret. Then one day, he set sail across the Atlantic on some important journey, and he never came back.**

**Lost at sea, my mom told me. Not dead. Lost at sea.**

"Wow…that's like a lie…but not a lie…in another lie," Hermes mumbled.

"Call me." Hermes said, winking at Sally.

Hermes got splashed by two twenty foot waves. Little Percy was laughing.

**She worked odd jobs, took night classes to get her high school diploma, and raised me on her own. She never complained or got mad. Not even once. But I knew I wasn't an easy kid.**

"Understatement of the year," Thalia laughed.

**Finally, she married Gabe Ugliano, **

"Is that the gambler?" Nico asked.

"Yeah," Grover said simply.

**who was nice the first thirty seconds we knew him,** **then showed his true colors as a world-class jerk. When I was young, I nick named him Smelly Gabe. **

**I'm sorry, but it's the truth. The guy reeked like moldy garlic pizza wrapped in gym shorts.**

"GROSS," Aphrodite and Piper shouted.

Aphrodite smiled at her daughter while Piper covered her mouth in embarrassment.

"Weird," Leo whispered in Jason's ear.

Jason shrugged. "Slip of the tongue?"

**Between the two of us, we made my mom's life pretty hard. The way Smelly Gabe treated her, the way he and I got along ... well, when I came home is a good example.**

"Better treat him right," Poseidon roared. He turned to his son who was now attempting to crawl from Annabeth's lap towards his niece Thalia.

"Ew, Annabeth get him away from me before I shock him out of here," Thalia grumbled trying to push over but was blocked by Clarisse strong frame.

"Give him a break Thals," Annabeth defended while encouraging Percy to crawl. "Go on Seaweed Brain, go to Thalia."

Percy laughed as he crawled onto her lap before missing his step and landing with a thud on his tiny chest on Thalia's lap.

"Oops," He giggled a little and sat himself right.

"Yeah get comfortable now," Thalia smiled evilly. "When I get my hands on you when your older, will see who's sitting on who."

**I walked into our little apartment, hoping my mom would be home from work. Instead, Smelly Gabe was in the living room, playing poker with his buddies. The television blared ESPN. Chips and beer cans were strewn all over the carpet.**

"Are we at Percy's house or in Ares basement," Hephaestus asked innocently.

The gods laughed as Aphrodite spun to face Ares.

"You said you cleaned up that crap!" She yelled.

**Hardly looking up, he said around his cigar, "So, you're home."**

**"Where's my mom?"**

**"Working," he said. "You got any cash?"**

"He asked him for money," Artemis said, disgusted. "Perfect example of a disgusting man!"

"I agree with Miss Love Sucks," Aphrodite chimed in. "Man's a disgrace of a mortal."

**That was it. No **_**Welcome back. Good to see you. How has your life been the last six months?**_

**Gabe had put on weight. He looked like a tuskless walrus in thrift-store clothes. He had about three hairs on his head, all combed over his bald scalp, as if that made him handsome or something.**

"Ew!" all the girls said to this**.**

**He managed the Electronics Mega-Mart in Queens, but he stayed home most of the time. I don't know why he hadn't been fired long before. He just kept on collecting paychecks, spending the money on cigars that made me nauseous, and on beer, of course. Always beer. Whenever I was home, he expected me to provide his gambling funds. He called that our "guy secret." Meaning, if I told my mom, he would punch my lights out.**

"WHAT," Nearly everyone yelled.

A flash came and then Smelly Gabe appeared unconscious. Poseidon walked over and kicked him in his soft stop. When he did Gabe shreiked like a girl. everybody was laughing at that. Gabe disappeared.

**"I don't have any cash," I told him.**

**He raised a greasy eyebrow.**

**Gabe could sniff out money like a bloodhound, which was surprising, since his own smell should've covered up everything else.**

_If she's doing what I think she's doing, than this woman is remarkable._ Athena and Artemis both thought.

**"You took a taxi from the bus station," he said. "Probably paid with a twenty. Got six, seven bucks in change. Somebody expects to live under this roof, he ought to carry his own weight. Am I right, Eddie?"**

**Eddie, the super of the apartment building, looked at me with a twinge of sympathy. "Come on, Gabe," he said. "The kid just got here."**

**"Am I **_**right**_**?**_**" **_**Gabe repeated.**

**Eddie scowled into his bowl of pretzels. The other two guys passed gas in harmony.**

"I think I'm going to hurl," Aphrodite said turning a weird shade of green.

**"Fine," I said. I dug a wad of dollars out of my pocket and threw the money on the table. "I hope you lose."**

"Considered it down," Hermes and Dionysus said together.

"D being nice, who knew?" Apollo smiled.

"Still hate them all," Dionysus eyed each demigod with a glare who glared back. "But only I am allowed to make their life a living hell."

**"Your report card came, brain boy!" he shouted after me. "I wouldn't act so snooty!"**

"JERK," Annabeth shouted. "You aren't any better!"

**I slammed the door to my room, which really wasn't my room. During school months, it was Gabe's "study." **

"Yeah right," Athena smirked. "That's like saying Poseidon has one too!"

"HEY!"

**He didn't study anything in there except old car magazines, but he loved shoving my stuff in the closet, leaving his muddy boots on my windowsill, and doing his best to make the place smell like his nasty cologne and cigars and stale beer.**

**I dropped my suitcase on the bed. Home sweet home.**

"Funny and sarcastic," Leo smiled. "Guys awesome!"

**Gabe's smell was almost worse than the nightmares about Mrs. Dodds,**

**or the sound of that old fruit lady's shears snipping the yarn.**

Annabeth shivered. _He still alive…he still alive…he still alive…that is until I get my hands on him!_

**But as soon as I thought that, my legs felt weak. I remembered Grover's look of panic—how he'd made me promise I wouldn't go home without him. A sudden chill rolled through me. I felt like someone—something—was looking for me right now, maybe pounding its way up the stairs, growing long, horrible talons.**

**Then I heard my mom's voice. "Percy?"**

**She opened the bedroom door, and my fears melted.**

"Mama's boy," The Ares snickered before a tiny shock from Thalia shut them up.

**My mother can make me feel good just by walking into the room.**

"Which is the way it's supposed to be!" Hera agreed.

Ares, Hephaestus, Artemis and Apollo, Hermes, and Dionysus, all rolled their eyes at the mother/stepmother.

**Her eyes sparkle and change color in the light. Her smile is as warm as a quilt. She's got a few gray streaks mixed in with her long brown hair, but I never think of her as old. When she looks at me, it's like she's seeing all the good things about me, none of the bad.**

"Amazing woman you have as the mother of your child Uncle," Artemis nodded.

"The best," Poseidon smiled, but didn't see the small eye twitch coming from Athena's throne. Or Sally blushing red as a traffic light.

**I've never heard her raise her voice or say an unkind word to anyone, not even me or Gabe.**

**"Oh, Percy." She hugged me tight. "I can't believe it. You've grown since Christmas!"**

**Her red-white-and-blue Sweet on America uniform smelled like the best things in the world: chocolate, licorice, and all the other stuff she sold at the candy shop in Grand Central. She'd brought me a huge bag of "free samples," the way she always did when I came home.**

**We sat together on the edge of the bed. While I attacked the blueberry sour strings, she ran her hand through my hair and demanded to know everything I hadn't put in my letters. She didn't mention anything about my getting expelled. She didn't seem to care about that. But was I okay? Was her little boy doing all right?**

**I told her she was smothering me, and to lay off and all that, but secretly, I was really, really glad to see her.**

"Awwww," All the girls said.

**From the other room, Gabe yelled, "Hey, Sally—how about some bean dip, huh?"**

"Get your own bean dip douche bag," Nico snarled.

"Douche bag?" Athena asked puzzled.

"Uh, future slang, just look at Lord Ares, he's one," Thalia smiled.

**I gritted my teeth.**

Like most did.

**My mom is the nicest woman in the world. She should've been married to a millionaire, not to some jerk like Gabe.**

**For her sake, I tried to sound upbeat about my last days at Yancy Academy. I told her I wasn't too down about the expulsion. I'd lasted almost the whole year this time. I'd made some new friends. I'd done pretty well in Latin. And honestly, the fights hadn't been as bad as the headmaster said. I liked Yancy Academy. I really did. I put such a good spin on the year, I almost convinced myself.**

**I started choking up, thinking about Grover and Mr. Brunner. Even Nancy Bobofit suddenly didn't seem so bad.**

**Until that trip to the muse**

**um ...**

**"What?" my mom asked. Her eyes tugged at my conscience, trying to pull out the secrets. "Did something scare you?"**

**"No, Mom."**

**I felt bad lying. I wanted to tell her about Mrs. Dodds and the three old ladies with the yarn, but I thought it would sound stupid.**

"It makes sense logically, but Percy's mom knew," Annabeth remembered how well Sally took everything about their world.

"You told a mortal?" Zeus asked his brother.

"Clear sighted," He replied before turning back to the book.

**She pursed her lips. She knew I was holding back, but she didn't push me.**

**"I have a surprise for you," she said. "We're going to the beach."**

"He loves going to Montauk." Said Annabeth.

_Why does she know so much about the sea spawn_ Athena wondered.

**My eyes widened. "Montauk?"**

**"Three nights—same cabin."**

**"When?"**

**She smiled. "As soon as I get changed."**

**I couldn't believe it. My mom and I hadn't been to Montauk the last two summers, because Gabe said there wasn't enough money.**

**Gabe appeared in the doorway and growled, "Bean dip, Sally? Didn't you hear me?"**

"I'll give you bean dip," Annabeth grumbled. "Right up your−"

"Annabeth," Athena scowled.

"Sorry mother," Not sounding sorry one bit.

**I wanted to punch him, but I met my mom's eyes and I understood she was offering me a deal: be nice to Gabe for a little while. Just until she was ready to leave for Montauk. Then we would get out of here.**

**"I was on my way, honey," she told Gabe. "We were just talking about the trip."**

**Gabe's eyes got small. "The trip? You mean you were serious about that?"**

"All the cereal in the world wouldn't fix this mortal," Demeter concluded.

"He makes, D seem cool," Apollo added.

**"I knew it," I muttered. "He won't let us go."**

"He'll be damned if he doesn't," The Queen of the gods roared. "Mother and son time is very important, and this pig or a mortal will not interfere."

**"Of course he will," my mom said evenly. "Your step father is just worried about money. That's all. Besides," she added, "Gabriel won't have to settle for bean dip. I'll make him enough seven-layer dip for the whole weekend. Guacamole. Sour cream. The works."**

"Bribery," Hermes sang. He shot his uncle a wink. "Great choice of woman uncle."

**Gabe softened a bit. "So this money for your trip ... it comes out of your clothes budget, right?"**

"WHAT! YOU JUST CAN'T PUT A BUDGET ON CLOTHES," Aphrodite screeched breaking nearly every eardrum on Olympus.

**"Yes, honey," my mother said.**

**"And you won't take my car anywhere but there and back."**

**"We'll be very careful."**

**Gabe scratched his double chin. "Maybe if you hurry with that seven-layer dip ... And maybe if the kid apologizes for interrupting my poker game."**

"He paid for the poker game," Jason exclaimed.

**Maybe if I kick you in your soft spot, I thought. And make you sing soprano for a week.**

"Do it!" Nearly everyone yelled.

**But my mom's eyes warned me not to make him mad.**

**Why did she put up with this guy? I wanted to scream. Why did she care what he thought?**

_It's all for you Perce._ Grover thought back to when he told Percy.

**"I'm sorry," I muttered. "I'm really sorry I interrupted your incredibly important poker game. Please go back to it right now."**

**Gabe's eyes narrowed. His tiny brain was probably trying to detect sarcasm in my statement.**

**"Yeah, whatever," he decided.**

**He went back to his game.**

**"Thank you, Percy," my mom said. "Once we get to Montauk, we'll talk more about... whatever you've forgotten to tell me, okay?"**

**For a moment, I thought I saw anxiety in her eyes—the same fear I'd seen in Grover during the bus ride—as if my mom too felt an odd chill in the air.**

**But then her smile returned, and I figured I must have been mistaken. She ruffled my hair and went to make Gabe his seven-layer dip.**

**An hour later we were ready to leave.**

**Gabe took a break from his poker game long enough to watch me lug my mom's bags to the car. He kept griping and groaning about losing her cooking—and more important, his '78 Camaro—for the whole weekend.**

**"Not a scratch on this car, brain boy," he warned me as I loaded the last bag. "Not one little scratch."**

"Like he'd be driving," Thalia growled.

**Like I'd be the one driving. **

"Scary," Nico whispered looking at Thalia while she flipped little Percy around to look her in the eyes.

"If anyone asks, you think like me, alright," Thalia said to Percy who was face to face with him.

He nodded not understanding a little scared.

**I was twelve. But that didn't matter to Gabe. If a seagull so much as pooped on his paint job, he'd find a way to blame me.**

**Watching him lumber back toward the apartment building, I got so mad I did something I can't explain. As Gabe reached the doorway, I made the hand gesture I'd seen Grover make on the bus, a sort of warding-off-evil gesture, a clawed hand over my heart, then a shoving movement toward Gabe. The screen door slammed shut so hard it whacked him in the butt and sent him flying up the stair case as if he'd been shot from a cannon. Maybe it was just the wind, or some freak accident with the hinges, but I didn't stay long enough to find out.**

**I got in the Camaro and told my mom to step on it.**

**Our rental cabin was on the south shore, way out at the tip of Long Island. It was a little pastel box with faded curtains, half sunken into the dunes. There was always sand in the sheets and spiders in the cabinets,**

Annabeth and Athena shuddered.

**and most of the time the sea was too cold to swim in.**

"Like that would stop him," Annabeth said.

**I loved the place.**

**We'd been going there since I was a baby. My mom had been going even longer. She never exactly said, but I knew why the beach was special to her. It was the place where she'd met my dad.**

"Who knew Poseidon could be a romantic," Aphrodite smiled thinking that meeting at a cabin on the beach was in her top 10 books for romantic getaways.

**As we got closer to Montauk, she seemed to grow younger, years of worry and work disappearing from her face. Her eyes turned the color of the sea.**

**We got there at sunset, opened all the cabin's windows, and went through our usual cleaning routine. We walked on the beach, fed blue corn chips to the seagulls, and munched on blue jelly beans, blue saltwater taffy, and all the other free samples my mom had brought from work.**

"What's with the blue food?" Zeus asked.

**I guess I should explain the blue food.**

"That'd be nice."

**See, Gabe had once told my mom there was no such thing. They had this fight, which seemed like a really small thing at the time. But ever since, my mom went out of her way to eat blue. She baked blue birthday cakes. She mixed blueberry smoothies. She bought blue-corn tortilla chips and brought home blue candy from the shop. This—along with keeping her maiden name, Jackson, rather than calling herself Mrs. Ugliano—was proof that she wasn't totally suckered by Gabe. She did have a rebellious streak, like me.**

"Good for her," Artemis nodded in approval.

"Nico turned to the demigods with a smile on his face, "Could you imagine if Percy's last name was Ugliano. Hmm, Percy Ugliano."

**When it got dark, we made a fire. We roasted hot dogs and marshmallows. Mom told me stories about when she was a kid, back before her parents died in the plane crash.**

Cue dark looks at Zeus.

**She told me about the books she wanted to write someday, when she had enough money to quit the candy shop.**

**Eventually, I got up the nerve to ask about what was always on my mind whenever we came to Montauk—my father. Mom's eyes went all misty. I figured she would tell me the same things she always did, but I never got tired of hearing them.**

**"He was kind, Percy," she said. "Tall, handsome, and powerful. But gentle, too. You have his black hair, you know, and his green eyes."**

"That he does," Poseidon smiled at his son who was poking at the fire with a stick.

Athena frowned. "Tall…yeah…powerful…I guess…but handsome and gentle….No way!"

_Keeping telling yourself that._ Aphrodite's thoughts ran through Athena's head.

_Shut up!_

**Mom fished a blue jelly bean out of her candy bag. "I wish he could see you, Percy. He would be so proud."**

"I am," He smiled.

**I wondered how she could say that. What was so great about me? A dyslexic, hyperactive boy with a D+ report card, kicked out of school for the sixth time in six years.**

"All that stuff make you who you are," Annabeth smiled. "And we wouldn't have it any other way."

"She's right," Thalia slowly agreed. "He bugs the hell out of me, but he's one of my best friends and he's unfortunately cool as he is now."

"Yeah. Without them we wouldn't be getting killed every three seconds." Said Nico.

**"How old was I?" I asked. "I mean ... when he left?"**

**She watched the flames. "He was only with me for one summer, Percy. Right here at this beach. This cabin."**

**"But... he knew me as a baby."**

"I did," Poseidon remembered his checkups every now and then.

**"No, honey. He knew I was expecting a baby, but he never saw you. He had to leave before you were born."**

"You broke the rule," Zeus shouted. "And the mortal didn't even know."

"Sue me," Poseidon shrugged. "I'd break every rule and law to see my son, and I'll continue to do so, even the deepest darkest pits of Tartarus wouldn't hold me back."

The other gods felt a little uneasy knowing that they didn't see their children or go through such lengths to visit once.

The demigods frowned at their parents, feeling a little jealous of Percy for having such a devoted parent for a god.

**I tried to square that with the fact that I seemed to remember ... something about my father. A warm glow. A smile.**

**I had always assumed he knew me as a baby. My mom had never said it outright, but still, I'd felt it must be true. Now, to be told that he'd never even seen me...**

**I felt angry at my father. **

Poseidon bowed his head in shame.

"He doesn't feel that way anymore Lord Poseidon," Annabeth reassured him.

**Maybe it was stupid, but I resented him for going on that ocean voyage, for not having the guts to marry my mom. He'd left us, and now we were stuck with Smelly Gabe.**

**"Are you going to send me away again?" I asked her. "To another boarding school?"**

**She pulled a marshmallow from the fire.**

**"I don't know, honey." Her voice was heavy. "I think ... I think we'll have to do something."**

**"Because you don't want me around?"**

"Ah idiot, why would you say that," Thalia moaned.

**I regretted the words as soon as they were out.**

"Good," Hera nodded.

**My mom's eyes welled with tears. She took my hand, squeezed it tight. "Oh, Percy, no. I—I **_**have **_**to, honey. For your own good. I have to send you away." Her words reminded me of what Mr. Brunner had said—that it was best for me to leave Yancy.**

**"Because I'm not normal," I said.**

**"You say that as if it's a bad thing, Percy. But you don't realize how important you are. I thought Yancy Academy would be far enough away. I thought you'd finally be safe."**

**"Safe from what?"**

"My idiot brothers," Poseidon grumbled getting a glare from the two.

**She met my eyes, and a flood of memories came back to me—all the weird, scary things that had ever happened to me, some of which I'd tried to forget.**

**During third grade, a man in a black trench coat had stalked me on the playground. When the teachers threatened to call the police, he went away growling, but no one believed me when I told them that under his broad-brimmed hat, the man only had one eye, right in the middle of his head.**

"What's a Cyclops doing stalking him?" Hephaestus asked.

"Probably watching over him," Poseidon answered.

**Before that—a really early memory. I was in preschool, and a teacher accidentally put me down for a nap in a cot that a snake had slithered into. My mom screamed when she came to pick me up and found me playing with a limp, scaly rope I'd somehow managed to strangle to death with my meaty toddler hands.**

"Wow, like Hercules," Jason awed.

**In every single school, something creepy had happened, something unsafe, and I was forced to move.**

**I knew I should tell my mom about the old ladies at the fruit stand, and Mrs. Dodds at the art museum, about my weird hallucination that I had sliced my math teacher into dust with a sword. But I couldn't make myself tell her. I had a strange feeling the news would end our trip to Montauk, and I didn't want that.**

**"I've tried to keep you as close to me as I could," my mom said. "They told me that was a mistake. But there's only one other option, Percy—the place your father wanted to send you. And I just... I just can't stand to do it."**

"She is a noble mother," Hera concluded. "She just wanted to keep her son."

"It may cost them their lives," Zeus told his wife.

"Yes, but it's you who's trying to take it!"

**"My father wanted me to go to a special school?"**

**"Not a school," she said softly. "A summer camp."**

**My head was spinning. Why would my dad—who hadn't even stayed around long enough to see me born— talk to my mom about a summer camp? And if it was so important, why hadn't she ever mentioned it before?**

**"I'm sorry, Percy," she said, seeing the look in my eyes. "But I can't talk about it. I—I couldn't send you to that place. It might mean saying good-bye to you for good."**

**"For good? But if it's only a summer camp ..."**

"He must be so confused," Piper felt sympathetic towards him.

**She turned toward the fire, and I knew from her expression that if I asked her any more questions she would start to cry.**

**That night I had a vivid dream.**

_Gods I hate his dreams. _Annabeth thought.

**It was storming on the beach, and two beautiful animals, a white horse and a golden eagle, were trying to kill each other at the edge of the surf.**

"God, what now," Hera groaned. "First the freak storms and now he's dreaming about you fighting."

Poseidon and Zeus glanced at each other wondering what the problem was.

**The eagle swooped down and slashed the horse's muzzle with its huge talons. The horse reared up and kicked at the eagles wings. As they fought, the ground rumbled, and a monstrous voice chuckled somewhere beneath the earth, goading the animals to fight harder.**

"Hades," The two brothers said together as the demigods shivered knowing who it really was.

**I ran toward them, knowing I had to stop them from killing each other, but I was running in slow motion. I knew I would be too late. I saw the eagle dive down, its beak aimed at the horse's wide eyes, and I screamed, **_**No!**_

"HA," Zeus thundered. "I win."

**I woke with a start.**

**Outside, it really was storming, the kind of storm that cracks trees and blows down houses. There was no horse or eagle on the beach, just lightning making false daylight, and twenty-foot waves pounding the dunes like artillery.**

"What's got you in such a bad mood," Athena wondered.

"Probably because I took out his eye," Zeus grinned before a splash of water smacked him straight in the face. "POSEIDON!"

"Wasn't me," He laughed holding his hands.

The small sound of giggling had everyone's attention towards Hestia who was quietly laughing with Percy in her arms as he laughed looking at Zeus.

"Sorry brother, but he's just defending his father," Hestia apologized still smiling.

Everyone in the throne room laughed as Zeus turned bright red before smiling a little.

**With the next thunderclap, my mom woke. She sat up, eyes wide, and said, "Hurricane."**

**I knew that was crazy. Long Island never sees hurricanes this early in the summer. But the ocean seemed to have forgotten. Over the roar of the wind, I heard a distant bellow, an angry, tortured sound that made my hair stand on end.**

**Then a much closer noise, like mallets in the sand. A desperate voice—someone yelling, pounding on our cabin door.**

"Monster?" Jason asked.

"Hope not," Grover whispered. "It's me!"

**My mother sprang out of bed in her nightgown and threw open the lock.**

**Grover stood framed in the doorway against a backdrop of pouring rain. But he wasn't... he wasn't exactly Grover.**

"Oh I get it now," Athena thought back to the title of the chapter.

**"Searching all night," he gasped. "What were you thinking?"**

**My mother looked at me in terror—not scared of Grover, but of why he'd come.**

**"Percy," she said, shouting to be heard over the rain. "What happened at school? What didn't you tell me?"**

**I was frozen, looking at Grover. I couldn't understand what I was seeing.**

_**"O Zeu kai alloi theoi!" **_**he yelled. "It's right behind me! Didn't you **_**tell **_**her?"**

"That's a stupid question Grover," Nico laughed. "Percy's mom just asked that."

Grover smiled shyly.

**I was too shocked to register that he'd just cursed in Ancient Greek, and I'd understood him perfectly. I was too shocked to wonder how Grover had gotten here by himself in the middle of the night. Because Grover didn't have his pants on—and where his legs should be ... where his legs should be ...**

"Spit it out boy," Dionysus grumbled.

**My mom looked at me sternly and talked in a tone she'd never used before: **_**"Percy. **_**Tell me **_**now**_**!"**

**I stammered something about the old ladies at the fruit stand, and Mrs. Dodds, and my mom stared at me, her face deathly pale in the flashes of lightning.**

**She grabbed her purse, tossed me my rain jacket, and said, "Get to the car. Both of you. **_**Go**_**!**_**"**_

**Grover ran for the Camaro—but he wasn't running, exactly. He was trotting, shaking his shaggy hindquarters, and suddenly his story about a muscular disorder in his legs made sense to me. I understood how he could run so fast and still limp when he walked.**

"Cause I'm awesome," Grover threw out.

"You wish,"

**Because where his feet should be, there were no feet. There were cloven hooves.**

Everyone was cracking up when Grover finished.


	6. Bull Fighting

**Still don't own anything.**

**Thanx to everyone who reviewed.**

* * *

"Who wants to read?"

"I will." Said Leo.

"**My Mother Teaches me Bullfighting," **Leo read.

**We tore through the night along dark country roads. Wind slammed against the Camaro. Rain lashed the wind shield. I didn't know how my mom could see anything, but she kept her foot on the gas.**

"My kind of driving," Ares grinned shooting a wink at Sally who frowned uncomfortably.

"Keep your eyes to yourself Ares," Poseidon said coldly.

**Every time there was a flash of lightning, I looked at Grover sitting next to me in the backseat and I wondered if I'd gone insane, or if he was wearing some kind of shag-carpet pants.**

**But, no, the smell was one I remembered from kindergarten field trips to the petting zoo— lanolin, like from wool. The smell of a wet barnyard animal.**

**All I could think to say was, "So, you and my mom... know each other?"**

"Way to break the ice Percy," Thalia laughed.

"That sentence sounds so wrong!" Nico grinned.

Artemis and Thalia frowned. "Men."

**Graver's eyes flitted to the rearview mirror, though there were no cars behind us. "Not exactly," he said. "I mean, we've never met in person. But she knew I was watching you."**

"Stalker!" Yelled Hermes, Apollo, and Leo.

**"Watching me?"**

**"Keeping tabs on you. Making sure you were okay. But I wasn't faking being your friend," he added hastily. "I **_**am **_**your friend."**

'You know, I don't think you classify stalkers as friends?" Leo wondered.

"I'm not a stalker, it's what satyr's do," Grover argued.

"Not at the Roman camp," Jason remembered. "They did absolutely nothing except beg for money."

**"Urn ... what **_**are **_**you, exactly?"**

**"That doesn't matter right now."**

**"It doesn't matter? From the waist down, my best friend is a donkey—"**

"He won't like that." Said Annabeth.

**Grover let out a sharp, throaty **_**"Blaa-ha-ha!"**_

**I'd heard him make that sound before, but I'd always assumed it was a nervous laugh. Now I realized it was more of an irritated bleat.**

**"Goat!" he cried.**

"Ahhh, so we can call you goat boy," Thalia turned to Grover.

"So not the point here."

**"What?"**

**"I'm a **_**goat **_**from the waist down."**

**"You just said it didn't matter."**

"He got you their goat-boy," Apollo joked.

_**"Blaa-ha-ha!**_ **There are satyrs who would trample you underhoof for such an insult!"**

**"Whoa. Wait. Satyrs. You mean like ... Mr. Brunner's myths?"**

**"Were those old ladies at the fruit stand a **_**myth, **_**Percy? Was Mrs. Dodds a myth?"**

**"So you **_**admit **_**there was a Mrs. Dodds!"**

"Sooo not the point Seaweed Brain," Annabeth shook her head.

"He probably just thought he was going crazy," Leo added.

**"Of course."**

**"Then why—"**

**"The less you knew, the fewer monsters you'd attract," Grover said, like that should be perfectly obvious. "We put Mist over the humans' eyes. We hoped you'd think the Kindly One was a hallucination. But it was no good. You started to realize who you are."**

**"Who I—wait a minute, what do you mean?"**

"Gods, no wonder he had no clue what was going on," Annabeth muttered. "You just confused him more Grover."

"Well sorry, but I was a little nervous in the moment."

**The weird bellowing noise rose up again somewhere behind us, closer than before. Whatever was chasing us was still on our trail.**

Sally held Percy tighter as Poseidon looked on frightened for them.

**"Percy," my mom said, "there's too much to explain and not enough time. We have to get you to safety."**

**"Safety from what? Who's after me?"**

**"Oh, nobody much," Grover said, obviously still miffed about the donkey comment. "Just the Lord of the Dead and a few of his blood-thirstiest minions."**

"GROVER," Everyone yelled.

**"Grover!"**

**"Sorry, Mrs. Jackson. Could you drive faster, please?"**

"Yes please," Poseidon pleaded.

**I tried to wrap my mind around what was happening, but I couldn't do it. I knew this wasn't a dream. I had no imagination. I could never dream up something this weird.**

**My mom made a hard left. We swerved onto a narrower road, racing past darkened farmhouses and wooded hills and PICK YOUR OWN STRAWBERRIES signs on white picket fences.**

"Ah, strawberries," Demeter sighed happily. The other gods rolled their eyes.

**"Where are we going?" I asked.**

**"The summer camp I told you about." My mother's voice was tight; she was trying for my sake not to be scared. "The place your father wanted to send you."**

Sally looked at Poseidon, no longer shy, and whispered, "Sorry."

"It's okay," He smiled back. "You did what any mother would do."

"Except ours," Hades grumbled. "We get eaten while bolt head is saved and loved by mother."

The elder gods agreed while Zeus smiled triumphantly.

"That;s because he's looks like a rock." Said Posiedon.

**"The place you didn't want me to go."**

**"Please, dear," my mother begged. "This is hard enough. Try to understand. You're in danger."**

**"Because some old ladies cut yarn."**

"Yes because some old ladies cut some yarn," Nico shook his head at his cousin's logic. "Percy really is messed up."

"You could say that again," Thalia muttered.

"Percy really is−"

"NOT LITERALLY!"

**"Those weren't old ladies," Grover said. "Those were the Fates. Do you know what it means—the fact they appeared in front of you? They only do that when you're about to ... when someone's about to die."**

"GROVER," Annabeth yelled. "You're only making things worse."

"I was nervous."

**"Whoa. You said 'you.'"**

**"No I didn't. I said 'someone.'"**

**"You meant 'you.' As in **_**me.**_**"**

**"I meant **_**you, **_**like 'someone.' Not you, **_**you.**_**"**

Olympus was quiet as Leo pealed his eyes off the book to look at Grover.

"The logic in that conversation was that of a baby," Athena shook her head in shame at Grover."

"Um, did I mention I was scared," Grover threw in.

**"Boys!" my mom said.**

"Yes, boys!" Artemis agreed before turning to Sally. "You're a brilliant woman."

Sally blushed while adjusting a sleeping Percy. "Thank you."

**She pulled the wheel hard to the right, and I got a glimpse of a figure she'd swerved to avoid—a dark fluttering shape now lost behind us in the storm.**

**"What was that?" I asked.**

**"We're almost there," my mother said, ignoring my question.**

**"Another mile. Please. Please. Please."**

"Please. Please. Please," Poseidon repeated quietly.

**I didn't know where **_**there **_**was, but I found myself leaning forward in the car, anticipating, wanting us to arrive.**

**Outside, nothing but rain and darkness—the kind of empty countryside you get way out on the tip of Long Island. I thought about Mrs. Dodds and the moment when she'd changed into the thing with pointed teeth and leathery wings. My limbs went numb from delayed shock. She really **_**hadn't **_**been human. She'd meant to kill me.**

"Yes, just like whatever it is behind you," Hermes said. "What is it by the way?"

The demigods shrugged not knowing and looked at Annabeth and Grover.

They shared a nervous glance at each other knowing what it was.

**Then I thought about Mr. Brunner ... and the sword he had thrown me. Before I could ask Grover about that, the hair rose on the back of my neck. There was a blinding flash, a jaw-rattling **_**boom!, **_**and our car exploded.**

"WHAT!" Poseidon roared.

He lunged for his brothers neck. Ares and Athena held him back while he screamed "Μπορείτε αηδιαστικό πλάσμα. Πώς μπορείτε να ζήσετε; Όταν πάρω στα χέρια μου σε σας!" In greek. **(A/N it means You distgusting creature. How can you live with yourself? When I get my hands on you...)**

**I remember feeling weightless, like I was being crushed, fried, and hosed down all at the same time.**

**I peeled my forehead off the back of the driver's seat and said, "Ow."**

**"Percy!" my mom shouted.**

**"I'm okay..."**

"Thank gods," Poseidon breathed.

"What about the satyr," Hera said to her brother.

Poseidon blushed. "Uh, sorry."

**I tried to shake off the daze. I wasn't dead. The car hadn't really exploded. We'd swerved into a ditch. Our driver's-side doors were wedged in the mud. The roof had cracked open like an eggshell and rain was pouring in.**

**Lightning. **

"DAD," Thalia yelled.

Jason shook his head in disappointment at his father's attempt to kill Percy. He didn't know the guy, but he seems like a cool persona and is friends with his friends, so him being dead would suck.

Zeus turned away from his daughters glare to meet Poseidon's.

"I'll remember this," He said coldly.

**That was the only explanation. We'd been blasted right off the road. Next to me in the backseat was a big motionless lump. "Grover!"**

**He was slumped over, blood trickling from the side of his mouth. I shook his furry hip, thinking, No! Even if you are half barnyard animal, you're my best friend and I don't want you to die!**

"The boy cares," Hera smiled.

**Then he groaned "Food," and I knew there was hope.**

At that everyone laughed.

**"Percy," my mother said, "we have to ..." Her voice faltered.**

**I looked back. In a flash of lightning, through the mud-spattered rear windshield, I saw a figure lumbering toward us on the shoulder of the road. The sight of it made my skin crawl. It was a dark silhouette of a huge guy, like a football player. He seemed to be holding a blanket over his head. His top half was bulky and fuzzy. His upraised hands made it look like he had horns.**

Athena's eyes went wide as she realized who it was.

She looked over at Percy who was still sleeping.

_How did you survive this?_

**I swallowed hard. "Who is—"**

**"Percy," my mother said, deadly serious. "Get out of the car."**

**My mother threw herself against the driver's-side door. It was jammed shut in the mud. I tried mine. Stuck too. I looked up desperately at the hole in the roof. It might've been an exit, but the edges were sizzling and smoking.**

**"Climb out the passenger's side!" my mother told me. "Percy—you have to run. Do you see that big tree?"**

"Hey, it's me!" Thalia said sarcastically.

All fourteen Olympians and the newer demigods looked at Thalia as if she grew a second head.

"What do you mean that's you?" Piper asked.

"Uh, you'll see, I'm sure someone will explain."

_**"What?"**_

**Another flash of lightning, and through the smoking hole in the roof I saw the tree she meant: a huge, White House Christmas tree-sized pine at the crest of the nearest hill.**

**"That's the property line," my mom said. "Get over that hill and you'll see a big farmhouse down in the valley. Run and don't look back. Yell for help. Don't stop until you reach the door."**

"You're amazing in a tough situation Mrs. Jackson," Annabeth smiled at her.

"Thank you," She smiled but still worried knowing this was going to happen to Percy.

**"Mom, you're coming too."**

"She can't," Poseidon said sadly.

Everyone looked on in the room at Sally with a sad smile.

She didn't know what to think but as long as Percy was safe, then everything was alright.

**Her face was pale, her eyes as sad as when she looked at the ocean.**

**"No!" I shouted. "You **_**are **_**coming with me. Help me carry Grover."**

"My loyal little boy," Sally cooed at Percy who was still sleeping.

_Too loyal_. Athena thought.

**"Food!" Grover moaned, a little louder.**

"Honestly Grover, who's hungry at a time like that," Nico looked over at the satyr who looked down in embarrassment.

**The man with the blanket on his head kept coming toward us, making his grunting, snorting noises. As he got closer, I realized he **_**couldn't **_**be holding a blanket over his head, because his hands—huge meaty hands—were swinging at his sides. There was no blanket. Meaning the bulky, fuzzy mass that was too big to be his head ... was his head. And the points that looked like horns …**

Soon, eyes started to pop when reality set in.

Ares, who thought it was pretty cool to fight the Minotaur looked over at Percy sleeping.

"Nice kid, real nice," He smiled.

"Moron, that isn't nice," Aphrodite smacked him hard. "If something happens, I won't get to mess with his love life."

Annabeth blushed crimson, which went unnoticed by everyone except Aphrodite.

**"He doesn't want **_**us**_**," my mother told me. "He wants **_**you. **_**Besides, I can't cross the property line."**

**"But..."**

**"We don't have time, Percy. Go. Please."**

**I got mad, then—mad at my mother, at Grover the goat,**

"The goat," Nico smiled. "Never gets old."

**at the thing with horns that was lumbering toward us slowly and deliberately like, like a bull.**

"It is a bull," Jason said wondering how Percy got out of this mess.

_He'll defiantly prove worthy at the Roman camp. _He thought.

**I climbed across Grover and pushed the door open into the rain. "We're going together. Come on, Mom."**

**"I told you—"**

**"Mom! I am not leaving you. Help me with Grover."**

_What an interesting male._ Artemis thought.

"Your son loves you very much," Hera said to Sally who had tears in her eyes.

"I know," She smiled, giving him a kiss on the head.

**I didn't wait for her answer. I scrambled outside, dragging Grover from the car. He was surprisingly light, but I couldn't have carried him very far if my mom hadn't come to my aid.**

**Together, we draped Grover's arms over our shoulders and started stumbling uphill through wet waist-high grass.**

**Glancing back, I got my first clear look at the monster. He was seven feet tall, easy, his arms and legs like something from the cover of **_**Muscle Man **_**magazine—bulging biceps and triceps and a bunch of other 'ceps, all stuffed like baseballs under vein-webbed skin. He wore no clothes except under wear—**

"Eww," Aphrodite shrieked.

**I mean, bright white Fruit of the Looms**

"Wow, who knew monsters bought regular brand names," Apollo said.

"I know right," Hermes said lifting his shirt. "I mean, I wear them too."

"Gods Hermes, pull your shirt down," Artemis said.

—**which would've looked funny, except that the top half of his body was so scary. Coarse brown hair started at about his belly button and got thicker as it reached his shoulders.**

**His neck was a mass of muscle and fur leading up to his enormous head, which had a snout as long as my arm, snotty nostrils with a gleaming brass ring, cruel black eyes, and horns—enormous black-and-white horns with points you just couldn't get from an electric sharpener.**

"Only Percy could come up with that to describe the creature that was in the labryinth.'' Said Annabeth.

**I recognized the monster, all right. He had been in one of the first stories Mr. Brunner told us. But he couldn't be real.**

"Oh he's real," Grover remembered the incident like yesterday.

**I blinked the rain out of my eyes. "That's—"**

**"Pasiphae's son," my mother said.**

"Impressive," Athena said looking at Sally in a whole new way. "You truly are remarkable."

"Thank you," She said quietly.

**"I wish I'd known how badly they want to kill you."**

**"But he's the Min—"**

**"Don't say his name," she warned. "Names have power."**

Athena smiled at her yet again.

"I still don't get how Barnacle Beard ended up with such an intelligent woman," Hades said.

"Yeah, what's your secret," Apollo pushed.

Poseidon smiled at Sally who smiled back. "We were in love."

The males groaned as most of the females cooed.

"That's beautiful," Aphrodite beamed.

**The pine tree was still way too far—a hundred yards uphill at least.**

**I glanced behind me again.**

**The bull-man hunched over our car, looking in the win dows—or not looking, exactly. More like snuffling, nuzzling. I wasn't sure why he bothered, since we were only about fifty feet away.**

"He relies on his smell to guide him," Athena told the others.

**"Food?" Grover moaned.**

"Seriously Goat-boy," Thalia looked over at him. "I you really thinking about food at a time like this?"

**"Shhh," I told him. "Mom, what's he doing? Doesn't he see us?"**

**"His sight and hearing are terrible," she said. "He goes by smell. But he'll figure out where we are soon enough."**

"You really are special," Zeus admitted, and earned a sly smile from Poseidon.

Sally blushed and looked over at Athena who beamed at her.

_Maybe we could be friends._ Athena thought.

**As if on cue, the bull-man bellowed in rage. He picked up Gabe's Camaro by the torn roof, the chassis creaking and groaning. He raised the car over his head and threw it down the road. It slammed into the wet asphalt and skidded in a shower of sparks for about half a mile before coming to a stop. The gas tank exploded.**

_**Not a scratch, **_**I remembered Gabe saying.**

**Oops.**

The throne room erupted in the laughs.

"Thank gods for that," Leo laughed.

"For once I agree with Valdez," Thalia laughed with Annabeth.

Leo looked over at Thalia who was oblivious to his stare.

_Score one Leo." _He smiled over at Jason who sighed.

_Will he ever get that she swore off men for eternity._ Jason thought.

**"Percy," my mom said. "When he sees us, he'll charge. Wait until the last second, then jump out of the way— directly sideways. He can't change directions very well once he's charging. Do you understand?"**

**"How do you know all this?"**

"Your mother is a very smart woman," Athena said to Percy who was still sleeping.

**"I've been worried about an attack for a long time. I should have expected this. I was selfish, keeping you near me."**

"You weren't selfish," Hera and Poseidon pushed.

**"Keeping me near you? But—"**

**Another bellow of rage, and the bull-man started tromping uphill.**

**He'd smelled us.**

**The pine tree was only a few more yards, but the hill was getting steeper and slicker, and Grover wasn't getting any lighter.**

**The bull-man closed in. Another few seconds and he'd be on top of us.**

**My mother must've been exhausted, but she shouldered Grover. "Go, Percy! Separate! Remember what I said."**

**I didn't want to split up, but I had the feeling she was right—it was our only chance. I sprinted to the left, turned, and saw the creature bearing down on me. His black eyes glowed with hate. He reeked like rotten meat.**

"Every disgusting thing on the planet has seemed to be embedded into his head," Thalia said.

"You would think that Percy spends his free time in a garbage can," Nico laughed.

**He lowered his head and charged, those razor-sharp horns aimed straight at my chest.**

**The fear in my stomach made me want to bolt, but that wouldn't work. I could never outrun this thing.**

_Smart move sea spawn. _Athena thought. _Maybe there's hope for you yet._

**So I held my ground, and at the last moment, I jumped to the side.**

"Thank gods," Annabeth sighed.

"You're welcome," Apollo smiled down at her. Annabeth rolled her eyes at the god of prophecies.

**The bull-man stormed past like a freight train, then bellowed with frustration and turned, but not toward me this time, toward my mother, who was setting Grover down in the grass.**

**We'd reached the crest of the hill. Down the other side I could see a valley, just as my mother had said, and the lights of a farmhouse glowing yellow through the rain. But that was half a mile away. We'd never make it.**

"Is Percy always this optimistic.?" Asked Piper.

**The bull-man grunted, pawing the ground. He kept eyeing my mother, who was now retreating slowly downhill, back toward the road, trying to lead the monster away from Grover.**

"What are you doing Sally," Poseidon yelled from his throne.

**"Run, Percy!" she told me. "I can't go any farther. Run!"**

**But I just stood there, frozen in fear, as the monster charged her. She tried to sidestep, as she'd told me to do, but the monster had learned his lesson. His hand shot out and grabbed her by the neck as she tried to get away. He lifted her as she struggled, kicking and pummeling the air.**

"NO," Poseidon yelled, but was held down by Zeus's hand.

**"Mom!"**

**She caught my eyes, managed to choke out one last word: "Go!"**

**Then, with an angry roar, the monster closed his fists around my mother's neck, and she dissolved before my eyes, melting into light, a shimmering golden form, as if she were a holographic projection. A blinding flash, and she was simply ... gone.**

Sally started to cry as she held Percy closer to her, who was now awake hearing his mother's cries.

Poseidon quickly shrunk to human size and ran towards Sally and his son. He quickly brought them into a tight hug as Sally cried.

"I won't let this happen," Poseidon told her quietly.

Annabeth and Thalia had tears in their eyes even thought they both knew she's alive and well.

Grover looked down ashamed knowing that if he done better, she would have never been captured.

**"No!"**

**Anger replaced my fear. Newfound strength burned in my limbs—the same rush of energy I'd gotten when Mrs. Dodds grew talons.**

"Cue, ass kicking Percy," Nico chimed in trying to lighten the mood.

**The bull-man bore down on Grover, who lay helpless in the grass. The monster hunched over, snuffling my best friend, as if he were about to lift Grover up and make him dissolve too.**

**I couldn't allow that.**

**I stripped off my red rain jacket.**

**"Hey!" I screamed, waving the jacket, running to one side of the monster. "Hey, stupid! Ground beef!"**

"Love the kid, but he needs better insults," Apollo laughed quietly.

**"Raaaarrrrr!" The monster turned toward me, shaking his meaty fists.**

**I had an idea**

"Well this isn't going to end well," Nico snickered.

"Why's that," Jason wondered.

The older demigods shrugged until Annabeth spoke up.

"His ideas are one way tickets to the underworld," She said. "There's a reason why he isn't a child of Athena."

—**a stupid idea, but better than no idea at all.**

**I put my back to the big pine tree and waved my red jacket in front of the bull-man, thinking I'd jump out of the way at the last moment.**

**But it didn't happen like that.**

**The bull-man charged too fast, his arms out to grab me whichever way I tried to dodge.**

**Time slowed down.**

**My legs tensed. I couldn't jump sideways, so I leaped straight up, kicking off from the creature's head, using it as a springboard, turning in midair, and landing on his neck.**

Every head turned to Percy who had now found his way on the floor as his parents stayed close. He was crawling back to his mini pool and didn't notice the wide eyes from anyone.

"That's freaking awesome," Leo shouted.

**How did I do that?**

**I didn't have time to figure it out. A millisecond later, the monster's head slammed into the tree and the impact nearly knocked my teeth out.**

**The bull-man staggered around, trying to shake me. I locked my arms around his horns to keep from being thrown. Thunder and lightning were still going strong. The rain was in my eyes. The smell of rotten meat burned my nostrils.**

"Again with the smells," Nico shook his head.

**The monster shook himself around and bucked like a rodeo bull. He should have just backed up into the tree and smashed me flat, but I was starting to realize that this thing had only one gear: forward.**

**Meanwhile, Grover started groaning in the grass. I wanted to yell at him to shut up, but the way I was getting tossed around, if I opened my mouth I'd bite my own tongue off.**

**"Food!" Grover moaned.**

"No comment," Nico joked.

**The bull-man wheeled toward him, pawed the ground again, and got ready to charge. I thought about how he had squeezed the life out of my mother, made her disappear in a flash of light,** **and rage filled me like high-octane fuel. I got both hands around one horn and I pulled backward with all my might. **

"Not gonna happen punk," Ares laughed.

**The monster tensed, gave a surprised grunt, then—**_**snap!**_

Ares went wide eyed as everyone snickered at him.

"You were saying," Annabeth laughed.

**The bull-man screamed and flung me through the air. I landed flat on my back in the grass. My head smacked against a rock. When I sat up, my vision was blurry, but I had a horn in my hands, a ragged bone weapon the size of a knife.**

"So that's how he got it," Nico turned to Grover and Annabeth.

"Yeah, I went to get it later on the next day," Grover explained.

**The monster charged.**

**Without thinking, I rolled to one side and came up kneeling. As the monster barreled past, I drove the broken horn straight into his side, right up under his furry rib cage.**

"The kids got moves," Ares grunted.

"I'm not a killing monster machine, but that's sick," Leo said wide eyed.

"You're actually right repair boy, extra points for killing him with his own horn," Piper agreed.

**The bull-man roared in agony. He flailed, clawing at his chest, then began to disintegrate—not like my mother, in a flash of golden light, but like crumbling sand, blown away in chunks by the wind, the same way Mrs. Dodds had burst apart.**

**The monster was gone.**

"Percy's good," Apollo threw.

"Yes," Zeus said hesitantly. "Maybe too good."

Poseidon, realizing what Zeus was insinuating, let go of Sally and blocked Percy's view from Zeus.

"What exactly are so saying brother?" He spat.

"Your boys powerful Poseidon, no doubt about it," Zeus began. "Already at a young age he's showing his powers, and has already defeated a Fury and the Minotaur without any training."

"And?"

"He's dangerous," Athena finished for her father. "In the wrong hands, he could be…"

"What? Be our downfall?" Poseidon questioned with a dark tone. "You read the note, you see his friend's dedication towards him, and you see what he's down in this room alone."

Athena leaned forward curious. "What exactly has he done?"

"When's the last time any of us actually argued, when's the last time we actually spent time with are children," He turned to Zeus. "When's the last time you saw your daughter and son together at once?"

The Olympians stayed silent as they watched the powerful Sea God prove his point.

"You can't harm him," Annabeth spoke up. "You read the note and you know that playing with Fate doesn't end well," She said.

Athena smiled at her daughter. "She's right, besides, the note said reading's, that means that we have other books to read to find out what we have to work with. Let's finish first before we make any rash decisions."

The gods agreed before Leo turned back to the book.

**The rain had stopped. The storm still rumbled, but only in the distance. I smelled like livestock and my knees were shaking. My head felt like it was splitting open. I was weak and scared and trembling with grief I'd just seen my mother vanish. **

**I wanted to lie down and cry, but there was Grover, needing my help, so I managed to haul him up and stagger down into the valley, toward the lights of the farm house. I was crying, calling for my mother, but I held on to Grover—I wasn't going to let him go.**

"Thanks Perce," Grover smiled.

Annabeth smiled sadly missing Percy's will to protect his friends.

**The last thing I remember is collapsing on a wooden porch, looking up at a ceiling fan circling above me, moths flying around a yellow light, and the stern faces of a familiar-looking bearded man and a pretty girl, her blond hair curled like a princess's.**

Annabeth blushed crimson as the demigods started to laugh.

"OH MY GODS," Aphrodite shrieked. "I'm already playing with his love life."

Athena looked at her daughter suspiciously. _She has blond hair._

Athena got up and went to Percy

"Stay away from Annabeth."

All was quiet and then Percy said, "No."

"Please."

"No."

"Ugh."

**They both looked down at me, and the girl said, "He's the one. He must be."**

"He's the one huh Annie," Thalia whispered to her.

"Not in that sense," Annabeth glared back.

Aphrodite, who had jumped off her throne, ran to Percy and picked him up enthusiastically and danced with him in her arms.

"Oh my handsome little project, we are going to have so much fun together and whoever it is."

Percy laughed as she spun him around and all Annabeth could do was blush.

**"Silence, Annabeth," the man said. "He's still conscious. Bring him inside."**


	7. Pinochle with a horse

"**I Play Pinochle With a Horse," **Piper read.

"Well, I guess there is a positive from the books," Nico summed up.

"What is it?" Asked Thalia.

Nico smiled glancing at Annabeth. "Now we get to see how Percy see's all of us."

Annabeth leaned in forward a little more interested now knowing that she could get direct thoughts from Percy's head about her.

"Well he see's Chiron as a horse," Thalia laughed.

**I had weird dreams full of barnyard animals. Most of them wanted to kill me. The rest wanted food.**

"Grover was the wanting food." Whispered Nico to Thalia.

**I must've woken up several times, but what I heard and saw made no sense, so I just passed out again. I remember lying in a soft bed, being spoon-fed something that tasted like buttered popcorn, only it was pudding. The girl with curly blond hair hovered over me, smirking as she scraped drips off my chin with the spoon.**

"Hmm, what are you doing there Annabeth?" Thalia asked innocently.

Annabeth blushed under the hard stare from her mother.

"She's obviously watching him sleep," Aphrodite said as if it was only obvious. "She's already crushing on him."

"SHE IS NOT," Athena shouted.

**When she saw my eyes open, she asked, "What will happen at the summer solstice?"**

"Yes, we'd all like to know," Zeus agreed.

**I managed to croak, "What?"**

**She looked around, as if afraid someone would over hear. "What's going on? What was stolen? We've only got a few weeks!"**

"Stolen? And why only a few weeks?" Artemis asked. "What happens after that?"

The demigods who knew stayed silent.

"You guys figure it out?" Leo whispered to Jason and Piper.

"No," They said simply.

**"I'm sorry," I mumbled, "I don't..."**

**Somebody knocked on the door, and the girl quickly filled my mouth with pudding.**

"Great way to shut him up," Thalia smiled. "Nice job Annabeth."

**The next time I woke up, the girl was gone.**

"You miss her already huh?" Aphrodite smiled at Percy who smiled back brightly. "I'll take that as a yes."

**A husky blond dude, like a surfer, stood in the corner of the bedroom keeping watch over me. He had blue eyes- at least a dozen of them- on his cheeks, his forehead, the backs of his hands.**

**When I finally came around for good, there was nothing weird about my surroundings, except that they were nicer than I was used to. I was sitting in a deck chair on a huge porch, gazing across a meadow at green hills in the distance. The breeze smelled like strawberries. **

"Smells like Demeter," Hades commented.

Demeter not sure what to think about the compliment, smiled at her brother shyly. "Thank you."

"Not a compliment," Hades smirked.

"HEY," Demeter shouted while Hades and Nico laughed evilly.

**There was a blanket over my legs, a pillow behind my neck. All that was great, but my mouth felt like a scorpion had been using it for a nest. My tongue was dry and nasty and every one of my teeth hurt.**

"How does he know how that feels?" Jason wondered.

**On the table next to me was a tall drink. It looked like iced apple juice, with a green straw and a paper parasol stuck through a maraschino cherry.**

**My hand was so weak I almost dropped the glass once I got my fingers around it.**

**"Careful," a familiar voice said.**

**Grover was leaning against the porch railing, looking like he hadn't slept in a week.**

"It felt like weeks," Grover said sadly. "The night was horrible."

Everyone shook their head agreeing sadly as Poseidon shot Sally a small smile.

**Under one arm, he cradled a shoe box. He was wearing blue jeans, Converse hi-tops and a bright orange T-shirt that said CAMP HALF-BLOOD. Just plain old Grover, Not the goat boy.**

"Goat-boy," Leo snickered.

**So maybe I'd had a nightmare. Maybe my mom was okay. We were still on vacation, and we'd stopped here at this big house for some reason. And...**

**"You saved my life," Grover said. "I... well, the least I could do ... I went back to the hill. I thought you might want this."**

**Reverently, he placed the shoe box in my lap.**

**Inside was a black-and-white bull's horn, the base jagged from being broken off, the tip splattered with dried blood. It hadn't been a nightmare.**

**"The Minotaur," I said.**

"Idiot," Most of the demigods said.

"You should beat it in him Mrs. Jackson," Thalia said to Sally. "I do."

**"Urn, Percy, it isn't a good idea-"**

**"That's what they call him in the Greek myths, isn't it?" I demanded. "The Minotaur. Half man, half bull."**

"Likes to play on the edge huh?" Hades smirked.

_Maybe I could have fun with someone this reckless. _Hades thought.

"You have no idea dad," Nico answered.

**Grover shifted uncomfortably. "You've been out for two days. How much do you remember?"**

**"My mom. Is she really ..."**

**He looked down.**

"I'm so sorry Mrs. Jackson," Grover said quietly.

Sally's heart went out towards Grover, and she quickly walked over and gave him a hug.

"It's okay, Percy's alright and that's all that counts," She smiled at him.

**I stared across the meadow. There were groves of trees, a winding stream, acres of strawberries spread out under the blue sky. The valley was surrounded by rolling hills, and the tallest one, directly in front of us, was the one with the huge pine tree on top. Even that looked beautiful in the sunlight.**

"So I'm not usually beautiful?" Thalia said angrily.

Annabeth jabbed Thalia. "He's your cousin, and you're a tree."

"True."

**My mother was gone. The whole world should be black and cold. Nothing should look beautiful.**

"The poor child already has monsters running after him, now his mothers gone," Demeter shook her head sadly. She turned to Hades and Zeus. "Are you happy now?"

The brothers stayed quiet and avoided there sisters gaze.

**"I'm sorry," Grover sniffled. "I'm a failure. I'm- I'm the worst satyr in the world."**

"Grover," Thalia and Annabeth shouted.

"You're the best satyr out there," Annabeth told him sternly. "Never doubt that."

**He moaned, stomping his foot so hard it came off. I mean, the Converse hi-top came off. The inside was filled with Styrofoam, except for a hoof-shaped hole.**

**"Oh, Styx!" he mumbled.**

**Thunder rolled across the clear sky.**

**As he struggled to get his hoof back in the fake foot, I thought, Well, that settles it.** **Grover was a satyr. I was ready to bet that if I shaved his curly brown hair, I'd find tiny horns on his head.**

**But I was too miserable to care that satyrs existed, or even minotaurs. All that meant was my mom really had been squeezed into nothingness, dissolved into yellow light.**

"Yellow light?" Poseidon wondered. His eyes widened in realization. He turned to Hades. "Why did you take her?" He roared.

The other Olympians put the pieces together.

"I don't know, this hasn't happened yet," Hades explained.

"If she isn't safe by the end of the book, you'll regret Hades," Poseidon threatened.

**I was alone. An orphan. I would have to live with ... Smelly Gabe?**

"Never," The demigods shouted.

"I'd take him to my palace," Poseidon said.

"What about your wife," Hera questioned.

Poseidon shrugged. "I don't care."

**No. That would never happen. I would live on the streets first. I would pretend I was seventeen and join the army. I'd do something.**

**Grover was still sniffling. The poor kid- poor goat, satyr, whatever- looked as if he expected to be hit.**

**I said, "It wasn't your fault."**

**"Yes, it was. I was supposed to **_**protect **_**you."**

**"Did my mother ask you to protect me?"**

**"No. But that's my job. I'm a keeper. At least... I was."**

**"But why ..." I suddenly felt dizzy, my vision swimming.**

**"Don't strain yourself," Grover said. "Here." He helped me hold my glass and put the straw to my lips.**

**I recoiled at the taste, because I was expecting apple juice. It wasn't that at all. It was chocolate-chip cookies. Liquid cookies.**

Sally smiled, loving that the older Percy got, he still loved he's blue cookies.

"Coowkies?" Percy's head shot up after hearing Piper's voice. He looked down at Sally and gave her a questioning look. "Mommy?"

Sally quickly walked up to Athena's throne, taking Percy from Athena and looking at Poseidon with a shy smile. "Is it possible to get something to eat for him? Preferably cookies?"

Poseidon was about to answer, but Demeter jumped off her throne and approached Sally.

"I got this one brother, I'll feed my nephew the best cookies Olympus has," Demeter smiled happily. "May I take him?"

"Of course," Sally said handing him over.

"Alright," Demeter said to Percy. "Now, let auntie Demeter show you how good whole grain cookies are."

The demigods gagged and Katie blushed at her mother's comments.

"He's a baby, not a 70 year old mortal," Hades sighed. "They like sugar."

"Hush Hades," Demeter returned to her throne and a plate of cookies appeared on her lap near Percy.

Percy eyed the cookies and looked up at Demeter. "Mine?"

"All yours," She smiled and watched as he took one carefully and nibbled on it before biting half of it off. "Good huh?"

Percy didn't answer, but shoved the rest of the cookie in his mouth with a smile.

Demeter eyed everyone in the room, "Would you look at that."

**And not just any cookies- my mom's homemade blue chocolate-chip cookies, buttery and hot, with the chips still melting. Drinking it, my whole body felt warm and good, full of energy. My grief didn't go away, but I felt as if my mom had just brushed her hand against my cheek, given me a cookie the way she used to when I was small, and told me everything was going to be okay.**

"Your relationship with your son is beautiful," Hera smiled at Sally.

"Thank you," Sally smiled.

**Before I knew it, I'd drained the glass. I stared into it, sure I'd just had a warm drink, but the ice cubes hadn't even melted.**

**"Was it good?" Grover asked.**

**I nodded.**

**"What did it taste like?" He sounded so wistful, I felt guilty.**

"He always feels guilty," Thalia shook her head.

**"Sorry," I said. "I should've let you taste."**

**His eyes got wide. "No! That's not what I meant. I just... wondered."**

**"Chocolate-chip cookies," I said. "My mom's. Home made."**

**He sighed. "And how do you feel?"**

**"Like I could throw Nancy Bobofit a hundred yards."**

**"That's good," he said. "That's good. I don't think you could risk drinking any more of that stuff"**

**"What do you mean?"**

**He took the empty glass from me gingerly, as if it were dynamite, and set it back on the table. "Come on. Chiron and Mr. D are waiting."**

**The porch wrapped all the way around the farmhouse.**

**My legs felt wobbly, trying to walk that far. Grover offered to carry the Minotaur horn, but I held on to it. I'd paid for that souvenir the hard way. I wasn't going to let it go.**

**As we came around the opposite end of the house, I caught my breath.**

"It is beautiful," Piper said tearing her eyes from the book.

"Yeah it is," Jason agreed. "I just wish I could remember what my other home looked like."

Leo patted his friend. "We'll get there. We have too."

**We must've been on the north shore of Long Island, because on this side of the house, the valley marched all the way up to the water, which glittered about a mile in the distance. Between here and there, I simply couldn't process everything I was seeing. The landscape was dotted with buildings that looked like ancient Greek architecture**

"It is Seaweed brain," Annabeth laughed.

**an open-air pavilion, an amphitheater, a circular arena except that they all looked brand new, their white marble columns sparkling in the sun. In a nearby sandpit, a dozen high school-age kids and satyrs played volleyball. Canoes glided across a small lake. Kids in bright orange T-shirts like Grover's were chasing each other around a cluster of cabins nestled in the woods. Some shot targets at an archery range. Others rode horses down a wooded trail, and, unless I was hallucinating, some of their horses had wings.**

"Yes, and they'll be quite friendly towards you Percy," Poseidon said to his son who had eaten half of the cookies on the plate.

"They treat him like royalty," Thalia said. "I always catch him at the stables talking to them."

**Down at the end of the porch, two men sat across from each other at a card table. The blond-haired girl who'd spoon-fed me popcorn-flavored pudding was leaning on the porch rail next to them.**

Aphrodite raised an eyebrow at Annabeth who managed to keep a straight face.

"Why are you always there daughter?" Athena sighed.

"Um…"

"Chiron asked her to." Said Grover.

**The man facing me was small, but porky.**

All eyes turned to Dionysus who frowned knowing this was going to get worse before it got better.

**He had a red nose, big watery eyes, and curly hair so black it was almost purple. He looked like those paintings of baby angels- what do you call them, hubbubs? No, cherubs. That's it. He looked like a cherub who'd turned middle-aged in a trailer park.**

Dionysus glared at Percy with dark eyes while everyone laughed at him.

"So you want to call me a cherub huh?" Dionysus glared. "Well you little brat, will see who's calling who when…"

"Oh lay off D," Apollo laughed. "I doubt you'll get anywhere with uncle P in the room."

Poseidon held his trident tight in his hands eyeing Dionysus who backed off.

**He wore a tiger-pattern Hawaiian shirt, and he would've fit right in at one of Gabe's poker parties, except I got the feeling this guy could've out-gambled even my step father.**

"Damn right I can," He agreed.

**"That's Mr. D," Grover murmured to me. "He's the camp director. Be polite.**

"Better be polite, "Dionysus grumbled.

**The girl, that's Annabeth Chase. She's just a camper,**

"What's that supposed to mean?" Annabeth eyed Grover.

"Umm…"

"Wait don't kill him," Piper chimed in. "There's more…"

**but she's been here longer than just about anybody. **

"I guess that's acceptable," Annabeth smiled at Grover playfully.

**And you already know Chiron..."**

**He pointed at the guy whose back was to me.**

**First, I realized he was sitting in the wheelchair. Then I recognized the tweed jacket, the thinning brown hair, the scraggly beard.**

**"Mr. Brunner!" I cried.**

**The Latin teacher turned and smiled at me. His eyes had that mischievous glint they sometimes got in class when he pulled a pop quiz and made all the multiple choice answers **_**B**_**.**

**"Ah, good, Percy," he said. "Now we have four for pinochle."**

**He offered me a chair to the right of Mr. D, who looked at me with bloodshot eyes and heaved a great sigh. "Oh, I suppose I must say it. Welcome to Camp Half-Blood. There. Now, don't expect me to be glad to see you."**

Zeus glared at his son who shrunk in his seat.

**"Uh, thanks." I scooted a little farther away from him because, **_**if **_**there was one thing I had learned from living with Gabe, it was how to tell when an adult has been hitting the happy juice. If Mr. D was a stranger to alcohol, I was a satyr.**

**"Annabeth?" Mr. Brunner called to the blond girl.**

"Does he have a hard time remembering names?" Annabeth said angrily. "He just said it."

**She came forward and Mr. Brunner introduced us. "This young lady nursed you back to health, Percy. Annabeth, my dear, why don't you go check on Percy's bunk? We'll be putting him in cabin eleven for now."**

**Annabeth said, "Sure, Chiron."**

**She was probably my age, maybe a couple of inches taller, and a whole lot more athletic looking. **

"You bet I am Seaweed Brain," Annabeth smiled.

**With her deep tan and her curly blond hair, she was almost exactly what I thought a stereotypical California girl would look like, except her eyes ruined the image.**

"And what's that supposed to mean!" Annabeth yelled.

"My daughter has beautiful eyes," Athena looked at Percy who had a half a cookie in his mouth and the other in his hand.

**They were startling gray, like storm clouds; pretty,**

Annabeth blushed. "Oops."

"He thinks your eyes are pretty," Aphrodite shrieked. "He's sooooo sweet!"

Thalia paled thinking that Percy was sweet.

"Please don't give me the image of Percy being sweet." Thalia said shakily.

**but intimidating, too, as if she were analyzing the best way to take me down in a fight.**

Athena nodded at her daughter who was smiling back at her.

**She glanced at the minotaur horn in my hands, then back at me. I imagined she was going to say, **_**You killed a minotaur! **_**or **_**Wow, you're so awesome! **_**or something like that.**

"Yeah right Percy," Thalia laughed along with everyone else.

"Never would I say that," Annabeth laughed. _But it was awesome Seaweed Brain._

**Instead she said, "You drool when you sleep."**

Leo accidently fell into Percy's little play pool laughing.

Thalia gave Annabeth a huge hug. "You are amazing."

Poseidon and Sally too cracked a smile at their sons thoughts.

**Then she sprinted off down the lawn, her blond hair flying behind her.**

"He has a crush already," Aphrodite sang.

Piper looked up at her mother and watched as she jumped in excitement. She cracked a smile before turning back to the book.

**"So," I said, anxious to change the subject. "You, uh, work here, Mr. Brunner?"**

"Way to break the ice," Nico smiled. "He really has a way with words huh?"

**"Not Mr. Brunner," the ex-Mr. Brunner said. "I'm afraid that was a pseudonym. You may call me Chiron."**

**"Okay." Totally confused, I looked at the director. "And Mr. D ... does that stand for something?"**

"Demented, Deranged, Drunk, stop me when you hear a winner," Apollo joked.

**Mr. D stopped shuffling the cards. He looked at me like I'd just belched loudly. "Young man, names are powerful things. You don't just go around using them for no reason."**

"For once I agree with him," Most gods said.

Dionysus smiled but later frowned realizing what they actually meant.

**"Oh. Right. Sorry."**

**"I must say, Percy," Chiron-Brunner broke in, "I'm glad to see you alive. It's been a long time since I've made a house call to a potential camper. I'd hate to think I've wasted my time."**

**"House call?"**

**"My year at Yancy Academy, to instruct you. We have satyrs at most schools, of course, keeping a lookout. But Grover alerted me as soon as he met you. He sensed you were something special, so I decided to come upstate. I convinced the other Latin teacher to ... ah, take a leave of absence."**

**I tried to remember the beginning of the school year. It seemed like so long ago, but I did have a fuzzy memory of there being another Latin teacher my first week at Yancy. Then, without explanation, he had disappeared and Mr. Brunner had taken the class.**

**"You came to Yancy just to teach me?" I asked.**

"Ego alert," Thalia stated.

**Chiron nodded. "Honestly, I wasn't sure about you at first.**

"And now it's out the window," Thalia summed up.

**We contacted your mother, to let her know we were keeping an eye on you in case you were ready for Camp Half-Blood. But you still had so much to learn. Nevertheless, you made it here alive, and that's always the first test."**

"He passed a test?" Annabeth said.

**"Grover," Mr. D said impatiently, "are you playing or not?"**

"How do you get his name right there, but not here," Hephaestus asked.

Dionysus shrugged.

**"Yes, sir!" Grover trembled as he took the fourth chair, though I didn't know why he should be so afraid of a pudgy little man in a tiger-print Hawaiian shirt.**

"You better be afraid," Dionysus said.

**"You **_**do **_**know how to play pinochle?" Mr. D eyed me suspiciously.**

**"I'm afraid not," I said.**

**"I'm afraid not, **_**sir**_**," he said.**

**"Sir," I repeated. I was liking the camp director less and less.**

**"Well," he told me, "it is, along with gladiator fighting and Pac-Man, one of the greatest games ever invented by humans. I would expect all **_**civilized **_**young men to know the rules."**

**"I'm sure the boy can learn," Chiron said.**

**"Please," I said, "what is this place? What am I doing here? Mr. Brun-Chiron-why would you go to Yancy Academy just to teach me?"**

**Mr. D snorted. "I asked the same question."**

"No one asked you," Aphrodite looked at him with a hard glare.

**The camp director dealt the cards. Grover flinched every time one landed in his pile.**

**Chiron smiled at me sympathetically, the way he used to in Latin class, as if to let me know that no matter what my average was, **_**I **_**was his star student. He expected **_**me **_**to have the right answer.**

**"Percy," he said. "Did your mother tell you nothing?'**

**"She said ..." I remembered her sad eyes, looking out over the sea. "She told me she was afraid to send me here, even though my father had wanted her to. She said that once I was here, I probably couldn't leave. She wanted to keep me close to her."**

**"Typical," Mr. D said. "That's how they usually get killed. Young man, are you bidding or not?"**

Aphrodite slapped Dionysus hard. "Show some sympathy you old drunk!"

"Hey I take offence to that," He yelled.

"GOOD," She yelled back.

**"What?" I asked.**

**He explained, impatiently, how you bid in pinochle, and so I did.**

**"I'm afraid there's too much to tell," Chiron said. "I'm afraid our usual orientation film won't be sufficient."**

**"Orientation film?" I asked.**

**"No," Chiron decided. "Well, Percy. You know your friend Grover is a satyr. You know-" he pointed to the horn in the shoe box- "that you have killed the Minotaur. No small feat, either, lad. What you may not know is that great powers are at work in your life. Gods- the forces you call the Greek gods- are very much alive."**

**I stared at the others around the table.**

**I waited for somebody to yell, **_**Not! **_**But all I got was Mr. D yelling, "Oh, a royal marriage. Trick! Trick!" He cackled as he tallied up his points.**

"He probably thought you were an idiot," Apollo laughed.

"Everybody knows he is." Said Hermes.

**"Mr. D," Grover asked timidly, "if you're not going to eat it, could I have your Diet Coke can?"**

**"Eh? Oh, all right."**

"That's unhealthy," Demeter said. "I think…"

**Grover bit a huge shard out of the empty aluminum can and chewed it mournfully.**

**"Wait," I told Chiron. "You're telling me there's such a thing as god."**

**"Well, now," Chiron said. "God- capital **_**G**_**, God. That's a different matter altogether. We shan't deal with the metaphysical."**

**"Metaphysical? But you were just talking about-"**

**"Ah, gods, plural, as in, great beings that control the forces of nature and human endeavors: the immortal gods of Olympus. That's a smaller matter."**

"Smaller?" The gods eyed Chiron.

**"Smaller?"**

"You all think like Percy," Nico said.

**"Yes, quite. The gods we discussed in Latin class."**

**"Zeus," I said. "Hera. Apollo. You mean them."**

**And there it was again-distant thunder on a cloud less day.**

**"Young man," said Mr. D, "I would really be less casual about throwing those names around, if I were you."**

"Yes you should," Zeus thundered.

**"But they're stories," I said. "They're- myths, to explain lightning and the seasons and stuff. They're what people believed before there was science."**

"They aren't going to like that," Annabeth muttered and watched as the gods eyed baby Percy.

Demeter picked him up and looked him in the eye. "Real, not science, okay?"

He nodded and took another bite from the cookie in his hands.

"Weal." Percy said.

**"Science!" Mr. D scoffed. "And tell me, Perseus Jackson"**

"Wow," The demigods said with a shocked face.

"You actually got his name right," Nico looked up at the director.

"Never again," Dionysus shrugged.

**-I flinched when he said my real name, which I never told anybody- "what will people think of your 'science' two thousand years from now?" Mr. D continued. "Hmm? They will call it primitive mumbo jumbo. That's what. Oh, I love mortals- they have absolutely no sense of perspective. **

**They think they've come **_**so-o-o **_**far. And have they, Chiron? Look at this boy and tell me."**

**I wasn't liking Mr. D much, but there was something about the way he called me mortal, as if... he wasn't. **

"He isn't, but we still aren't sure what he is exactly," Hermes eyed his half brother suspiciously.

**It was enough to put a lump in my throat, to suggest why Grover was dutifully minding his cards, chewing his soda can, and keeping his mouth shut.**

**"Percy," Chiron said, "you may choose to believe or not, but the fact is that **_**immortal **_**means immortal. Can you imagine that for a moment, never dying? Never fading? Existing, just as you are, for all time?"**

_He had the chance. _Annabeth thought._ But choose me instead._

_That is becuase he loves you. _Aphrodite thought back.

**I was about to answer, off the top of my head, that it sounded like a pretty good deal, but the tone of Chiron's voice made me hesitate.**

**"You mean, whether people believed in you or not," I said.**

**"Exactly," Chiron agreed. "If you were a god, how would you like being called a myth, an old story to explain lightning? What if I told you, Perseus Jackson, that some day people would call **_**you **_**a myth, just created to explain how little boys can get over losing their mothers?"**

Chiron looked down a little ashamed. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that."

"It's okay," Sally spoke up breaking the silence. "I should be thanking you for taking care of him."

**My heart pounded. He was trying to make me angry for some reason, but I wasn't going to let him. I said, "I wouldn't like it. But I don't believe in gods."**

**"Oh, you'd better," Mr. D murmured. "Before one of them incinerates you."**

"I'd like to see you try," Poseidon glared.

**Grover said, "P-please, sir. He's just lost his mother. He's in shock."**

"Thank you Grover," Poseidon smiled at his sons best friend.

"Uh…your welcome…lord Poseidon," Grover said shocked that Poseidon actually acknowledged him by name.

**"A lucky thing, too," Mr. D grumbled, playing a card. "Bad enough I'm confined to this miserable job, working with boys who don't even believe.'"**

**He waved his hand and a goblet appeared on the table, as if the sunlight had bent, momentarily, and woven the air into glass. The goblet filled itself with red wine.**

Zeus glared at Dionysus. "Better smarten up Dionysus."

"Yes father."

**My jaw dropped, but Chiron hardly looked up.**

**"Mr. D," he warned, "your restrictions."**

**Mr. D looked at the wine and feigned surprise.**

**"Dear me." He looked at the sky and yelled, "Old habits! Sorry!"**

**More thunder.**

**Mr. D waved his hand again, and the wineglass changed into a fresh can of Diet Coke. He sighed unhappily, popped the top of the soda, and went back to his card game.**

**Chiron winked at me. "Mr. D offended his father a while back, took a fancy to a wood nymph who had been declared off-limits."**

**"A wood nymph," I repeated, still staring at the Diet Coke can like it was from outer space.**

**"Yes," Mr. D confessed. "Father loves to punish me. The first time, Prohibition. Ghastly! Absolutely horrid ten years! The second time- well, she really was pretty, and I couldn't stay away- the second time, he sent me here. Half-Blood Hill. Summer camp for brats like you. 'Be a better influence,' he told me. 'Work with youths rather than tearing them down.' Ha.' Absolutely unfair."**

"More than fair," Zeus shouted.

"Of course father," He said fearing for his health. "Very generous."

**Mr. D sounded about six years old, like a pouting little kid.**

"He is," Zeus said looking at Percy who was perched in his sister's lap. "Let me take him, my nephew and I agree on many things, I'd like a chance to hold him."

Poseidon eyed his brother suspiciously before nodding at Demeter. She handed him over carefully while daring her brother to harm the only child she's ever known to finish a full plate of her cookies.

"Well now, we agree that my son is rather annoying huh Perseus," Zeus smiled down at his nephew.

"Wow," Percy's brilliant answer was, as he lightly touched Zeus's beard.

**"And ..." I stammered, "your father is ..."**

_**"Di immortales, **_**Chiron," Mr. D said. "I thought you taught this boy the basics. My father is Zeus, of course."**

**I ran through D names from Greek mythology. Wine. The skin of a tiger. The satyrs that all seemed to work here. The way Grover cringed, as if Mr. D were his master.**

"Yes, I like that, their master," Dionysus repeated evilly.

**"You're Dionysus," I said. "The god of wine."**

**Mr. D rolled his eyes. "What do they say, these days, Grover? Do the children say, 'Well, duh!'?"**

**"Y-yes, Mr. D."**

**"Then, well, duh! Percy Jackson. Did you think I was Aphrodite, perhaps?"**

"You wish," Aphrodite yelled at him.

**"You're a god."**

**"Yes, child."**

**"A god. You."**

"I didn't know he started off at such a young age at pissing off gods," Nico said.

"Yeah, it was his first thing on his to do list," Annabeth answered.

**He turned to look at me straight on, and I saw a kind of purplish fire in his eyes, a hint that this whiny, plump little man was only showing me the tiniest bit of his true nature. I saw visions of grape vines choking unbelievers to death, drunken warriors insane with battle lust, sailors screaming as their hands turned to flippers, their faces elongating into dolphin snouts. I knew that if I pushed him, Mr. D would show me worse things. He would plant a disease in my brain that would leave me wearing a strait-jacket in a rubber room for the rest of my life.**

Jason eyed the camp director indiscreetly. _Lupa may be bad, but this guys worse!_

**"Would you like to test me, child?" he said quietly.**

**"No. No, sir."**

**The fire died a little. He turned back to his card game. "I believe I win."**

**"Not quite, Mr. D," Chiron said. He set down a straight, tallied the points, and said, "The game goes to me."**

**I thought Mr. D was going to vaporize Chiron right out of his wheelchair, but he just sighed through his nose, as if he were used to being beaten by the Latin teacher. He got up, and Grover rose, too.**

**"I'm tired," Mr. D said. **

"Sore loser," Artemis mumbled.

**"I believe I'll take a nap before the sing-along tonight. But first, Grover, we need to talk, **_**again, **_**about your less-than-perfect performance on this assignment."**

"HEY," Annabeth and Thalia shouted, defending their friend.

"I agree with the demigods," Poseidon said. "He brought Percy to camp, job done."

**Grover's face beaded with sweat. "Y-yes, sir."**

**Mr. D turned to me. "Cabin eleven, Percy Jackson. And mind your manners."**

"And where are your manners?" Athena said, not noticing that she defended Percy in a way.

**He swept into the farmhouse, Grover following miserably.**

**"Will Grover be okay?" I asked Chiron.**

"Great friend," Hestia smiled again. _The young hero is destined for greatness._

**Chiron nodded, though he looked a bit troubled. "Old Dionysus isn't really mad. He just hates his job. He's been ... ah, grounded, I guess you would say, and he can't stand waiting another century before he's allowed to go back to Olympus."**

**"Mount Olympus," I said. "You're telling me there really is a palace there?"**

"You're in it," Zeus looked down at Percy.

**"Well now, there's Mount Olympus in Greece. And then there's the home of the gods, the convergence point of their powers, which did indeed used to be on Mount Olympus. It's still called Mount Olympus, out of respect to the old ways, but the palace moves, Percy, just as the gods do."**

**"You mean the Greek gods are here? Like ... in **_**America**_**?"**

**"Well, certainly. The gods move with the heart of the West."**

**"The what?"**

"Didn't understand that either," Nico mumbled.

"You don't understand anything," Thalia shot back.

**"Come now, Percy. What you call 'Western civilization.' Do you think it's just an abstract concept? No, it's a living force. A collective consciousness that has burned bright for thousands of years. The gods are part of it. You might even say they are the source of it, or at least, they are tied so tightly to it that they couldn't possibly fade, not unless all of Western civilization were obliterated. The fire started in Greece. Then, as you well know- or as I hope you know, since you passed my course- the heart of the fire moved to Rome, and so did the gods. Oh, different names, perhaps- Jupiter for Zeus, Venus for Aphrodite, and so on- but the same forces, the same gods."**

**"And then they died."**

"Do we look dead?" Apollo said horrified.

**"Died? No. Did the West die? The gods simply moved, to Germany, to France, to Spain, for a while. Wherever the flame was brightest, the gods were there. They spent several centuries in England. All you need to do is look at the architecture.**

**People do not forget the gods. Every place they've ruled, for the last three thousand years, you can see them in paintings, in statues, on the most important buildings. And yes, Percy, of course they are now in your United States. Look at your symbol, the eagle of Zeus. Look at the statue of Prometheus in Rockefeller Center, the Greek facades of your government buildings in Washington. I defy you to find any American city where the Olympians are not prominently displayed in multiple places. Like it or not- and believe me, plenty of people weren't very fond of Rome, either**

**- America is now the heart of the flame. It is the great power of the West. And so Olympus is here. And we are here."**

**It was all too much, especially the fact that **_**I **_**seemed to be included in Chiron's **_**we, **_**as if I were part of some club.**

"Could we start a club?" Apollo asked Zeus.

"No!"

**"Who are you, Chiron? Who ... who am I?"**

**Chiron smiled. He shifted his weight as if he were going to get up out of his wheelchair, but I knew that was impossible. He was paralyzed from the waist down.**

**"Who are you?" he mused. "Well, that's the question we all want answered, isn't it? But for now, we should get you a bunk in cabin eleven. There will be new friends to 'meet. And plenty of time for lessons tomorrow. Besides, there will be smores at the campfire tonight, and I simply adore chocolate."**

**And then he did rise from his wheelchair. But there was something odd about the way he did it. His blanket fell away from his legs, but the legs didn't move. His waist kept getting longer, rising above his belt. At first, I thought he was wearing very long, white velvet underwear, but as he kept rising out of the chair, taller than any man, I realized that the velvet underwear wasn't underwear; it was the front of an animal, muscle and sinew under coarse white fur. And the wheelchair wasn't a chair. It was some kind of container, an enormous box on wheels, and it must've been magic, because there's no way it could've held all of him. A leg came out, long and knobby-kneed, with a huge polished hoof. Then another front leg, then hindquarters, and then the box was empty, nothing but a metal shell with a couple of fake human legs attached.**

**I stared at the horse who had just sprung from the wheelchair: a huge white stallion. But where its neck should be was the upper body of my Latin teacher, smoothly grafted to the horse's trunk.**

**"What a relief," the centaur said. "I'd been cooped up in there so long, my fetlocks had fallen asleep. Now, come, Percy Jackson. Let's meet the other campers."**


	8. Lord of the Bathroom

**I don't own anything.**

* * *

"Who wants to read?"

"I will." Said Poseidon

**"I Become Supreme Lord of the Bathroom," **Poseidon read.

"So…I'm guessing Percy's the lord?" Leo asked.

No one answered.

**Once I got over the fact that my Latin teacher was a horse, we had a nice tour, though I was careful not to walk behind him. I'd done pooper-scooper patrol in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade a few times, and, I'm sorry, I did not trust Chiron's back end the way I trusted his front.**

"That's disgusting," Most of the girls said.

**We passed the volleyball pit. Several of the campers nudged each other. One pointed to the minotaur horn I was carrying. Another said, "That's **_**him**_**."**

**Most of the campers were older than me. Their satyr friends were bigger than Grover, all of them trotting around in orange CAMP HALF-BLOOD T-shirts, with nothing else to cover their bare shaggy hindquarters. I wasn't normally shy, but the way they stared at me made me uncomfortable. I felt like they were expecting me to do a flip or something.**

**I looked back at the farmhouse. It was a lot bigger than I'd realized—four stories tall, sky blue with white trim, like an upscale seaside resort. I was checking out the brass eagle weather vane on top when something caught my eye, a shadow in the uppermost window of the attic gable. Something had moved the curtain, just for a second, and I got the distinct impression I was being watched.**

**"What's up there?" I asked Chiron.**

**He looked where I was pointing, and his smile faded. "Just the attic."**

**"Somebody lives there?"**

**"No," he said with finality. "Not a single living thing.**

"He lied without really lying. Impresive." Said Hermes.

**I got the feeling he was being truthful. But I was also sure something had moved that curtain.**

**"Come along, Percy," Chiron said, his lighthearted tone now a little forced. "Lots to see."**

**We walked through the strawberry fields, where campers were picking bushels of berries while a satyr played a tune on a reed pipe.**

"Too bad Grover can't play his reed pipes properly," Thalia sighed.

"Hey," Grover shouted. "I'm perfectly fine with my reed pipes!"

**Chiron told me the camp grew a nice crop for export to New York restaurants and Mount Olympus. "It pays our expenses," he explained. "And the strawberries take almost no effort."**

**He said Mr. D had this effect on fruit-bearing plants: they just went crazy when he was around. It worked best with wine grapes, but Mr. D was restricted from growing those, so they grew strawberries instead.**

"Unfortunately," Dionysus grumbled.

**I watched the satyr playing his pipe. His music was causing lines of bugs to leave the strawberry patch in every direction, like refugees fleeing a fire. I wondered if Grover could work that kind of magic with music.**

"Don't answer that," Grover said to the guys who had all opened their mouths to speak.

**I wondered if he was still inside the farmhouse, getting chewed out by Mr. D.**

"You better not," Aphrodite stared hard at Dionysus. "He did his job."

**"Grover won't get in too much trouble, will he?" I asked Chiron. "I mean ... he was a good protector. Really."**

"Thanks for trying Perce," Grover said to Percy who had crawled near his feet.

**Chiron sighed. He shed his tweed jacket and draped it over his horses back like a saddle. "Grover has big dreams, Percy. Perhaps bigger than are reasonable.**

**To reach his goal, he must first demonstrate great courage by succeeding as a keeper, finding a new camper and bringing him safely to Half-Blood Hill."**

"But he did that!" Annabeth shouted. "He brought three people back!"

**"But he did that!"**

"Weird," Nico mumbled. "Is there a saying about best friends thinking alike?" Nico said with adevelish smile on his face.

"You know, I've heard the saying that two people who like each other think alike."

A knife whizzed past his ear.

Annabeth blushed but kept her chin high. "Percy's right, he did that."

**"I might agree with you," Chiron said. "But it is not my place to judge. **

"It should be Chiron," Thalia said to the centaur. "Your word is one of the most important on Olympus."

**Dionysus and the Council of Cloven Elders must decide. I'm afraid they might not see this assignment as a success. After all, Grover lost you in New York. Then there's the unfortunate ... ah ... fate of your mother. And the fact that Grover was unconscious when you dragged him over the property line. The council might question whether this shows any courage on Grover's part."**

"That's a load of crap," Nico said sticking up for his cousin's best friend. "I don't know many people who could survive an attack from the Minotaur. So what if Grover didn't kill it, he still warned Percy and brought him to camp regardless."

Dionysus shifted in his seat under the intense gaze from all the gods and demigods.

"Thanks guys," Grover said.

**I wanted to protest. None of what happened was Grover's fault. I also felt really, really guilty. If I hadn't given Grover the slip at the bus station, he might not have gotten in trouble.**

"It's not your fault Perce," Grover smiled at his friends thoughts.

"Yeah Seaweed Brain," Annabeth smiled brightly as she picked up Percy who had sat patiently waiting for her to pick him up. She placed him back onto his lap. "Those old goats are to blame."

**"He'll get a second chance, won't he?"**

"That' was his second chance," Thalia whispered to herself.

**Chiron winced. "I'm afraid that **_**was **_**Grover's second chance, Percy. The council was not anxious to give him another, either, after what happened the first time, five years ago. Olympus knows, I advised him to wait longer before trying again. He's still so small for his age..."**

**"How old is he?"**

**"Oh, twenty-eight."**

"Wow," Aphrodite said looking at Grover. "You look great at your age."

"Um, thanks," Grover turned red from the gaze of the love goddess.

**"What! And he's in sixth grade?"**

**"Satyrs mature half as fast as humans, Percy. Grover has been the equivalent of a middle school student for the past six years."**

**"That's horrible."**

**"Quite," Chiron agreed. "At any rate, Grover is a late bloomer, even by satyr standards, and not yet very accomplished at woodland magic. Alas, he was anxious to pursue his dream. Perhaps now he will find some other career..."**

**"That's not fair," I said. "What happened the first time? Was it really so bad?"**

Athena frowned not knowing what had happened that had given the satyr such treatment.

Thalia on the other hand was looking at Grover with a sincere look in her eyes. _If things hadn't turned out the way they have back then, Grover may have his searching license faster. _

**Chiron looked away quickly. "Let's move along, shall we?"**

**But I wasn't quite ready to let the subject drop. Something had occurred to me when Chiron talked about my mother's fate, as if he were intentionally avoiding the word **_**death. **_**The beginnings of an idea—a tiny, hopeful fire—started forming in my mind.**

Annabeth and Grover exchanged a small smile and the rest wondered what Percy was thinking.

**"Chiron," I said. "If the gods and Olympus and all that are real ..."**

**"Yes, child?"**

**"Does that mean the Underworld is real, too?"**

"Interesting," Hades smirked knowing what is nephew was planning. "The boy wants to come and see his uncle in the flesh."

Athena looked at Sally who had tears in her eyes. "He wants his mother back."

Sally looked up at the goddess and smiled before turning her eyes to Percy. He had both his hands lost in Annabeth's hair as she stared at him with bright eyes.

**Chiron's expression darkened.**

**"Yes, child." He paused, as if choosing his words care fully. "There is a place where spirits go after death. But for now ... until we know more ... I would urge you to put that out of your mind."**

**"What do you mean, 'until we know more'?"**

**"Come, Percy. Let's see the woods."**

"Wow Chiron," Apollo laughed.

**As we got closer, I realized how huge the forest was. It took up at least a quarter of the valley, with trees so tall and thick, you could imagine nobody had been in there since the Native Americans.**

**Chiron said, "The woods are stocked, if you care to try your luck, but go armed."**

**"Stocked with what?" I asked. "Armed with what?"**

**"You'll see. Capture the flag is Friday night. Do you have your own sword and shield?"**

**"My own—?"**

**"No," Chiron said. "I don't suppose you do. I think a size five will do. I'll visit the armory later."**

**I wanted to ask what kind of summer camp had an armory, but there was too much else to think about, so the tour continued. We saw the archery range, the canoeing lake, the stables (which Chiron didn't seem to like very much),** **the javelin range, the sing-along amphitheater, and the arena where Chiron said they held sword and spear fights.**

**"Sword and spear fights?" I asked.**

"Got that right punk," Ares perked up at the mention of weapons.

**"Cabin challenges and all that," he explained. "Not lethal. Usually. Oh, yes, and there's the mess hall."**

"Seriously Chiron, that's the third time," Nico laughed.

**Chiron pointed to an outdoor pavilion framed in white Grecian columns on a hill overlooking the sea. There were a dozen stone picnic tables. No roof. No walls.**

**"What do you do when it rains?" I asked.**

**Chiron looked at me as if I'd gone a little weird.**

**"We still have to eat, don't we?" I decided to drop the subject.**

**Finally, he showed me the cabins. There were twelve of them, nestled in the woods by the lake. They were arranged in a U, with two at the base and five in a row on either side. And they were without doubt the most bizarre collection of buildings I'd ever seen.**

**Except for the fact that each had a large brass number above the door (odds on the left side, evens on the right), they looked absolutely nothing alike. Number nine had smokestacks, like a tiny factory. **

Leo smiled at Hephaestus.

**Number four had tomato vines on the walls and a roof made out of real grass. **

**Seven seemed to be made of solid gold, which gleamed so much in the sunlight it was almost impossible to look at. **

**They all faced a commons area about the size of a soccer field, dotted with Greek statues, fountains, flower beds, and a couple of basketball hoops (which were more my speed).**

**In the center of the field was a huge stone-lined firepit. Even though it was a warm afternoon, the hearth smoldered. A girl about nine years old was tending the flames, poking the coals with a stick.**

"He saw me," Hestia smiled brightly.

"What were you doing there, sister?" Zeus asked.

"Tending the flame of course," She said simply. "I go to camp quite often actually."

**The pair of cabins at the head of the field, numbers one and two, looked like his-and-hers mausoleums, big white marble boxes with heavy columns in front. Cabin one was the biggest and bulkiest of the twelve. Its polished bronze doors shimmered like a hologram, so that from different angles lightning bolts seemed to streak across them.**

Zeus smiled at his children but noticed that they didn't smile back. "Why don't I get a smile?"

"I don't even live there," Jason pointed out. "I'm only staying there temporarily and it doesn't feel like home."

"I just don't live at camp," Thalia said simply.

**Cabin two was more graceful somehow, with slimmer columns garlanded with pomegranates and flowers. The walls were carved with images of peacocks.**

Hera smiled but noticed that many demigods were glaring at her. "What?"

"Nothing," They said.

**"Zeus and Hera?" I guessed.**

**"Correct," Chiron said.**

**"Their cabins look empty."**

"Because they are and should be," Hera grumbled. "Though someone has a problem being faithful."

**"Several of the cabins are. That's true. No one ever stays in one or two."**

**Okay. So each cabin had a different god, like a mascot.**

"That's a different way to think of it," Hephaestus said casually.

"Yes, but I take offence to that," Athena grumbled, looking as her daughter played peek a boo with the sea spawn.

**Twelve cabins for the twelve Olympians. But why would some be empty?**

**I stopped in front of the first cabin on the left, cabin three.**

"Of course he would," Zeus grumbled, as Poseidon smiled brightly.

"Go on Percy, go in," Poseidon urged on.

**It wasn't high and mighty like cabin one, but long and low and solid. The outer walls were of rough gray stone studded with pieces of seashell and coral, as if the slabs had been hewn straight from the bottom of the ocean floor. I peeked inside the open doorway and Chiron said, "Oh, I wouldn't do that!"**

"Let him be Chiron," Poseidon joked around. "He's only curious."

**Before he could pull me back, I caught the salty scent of the interior, like the wind on the shore at Montauk. The interior walls glowed like abalone. **

"It's amazing in there," Annabeth gushed. She quickly realized that she said that out loud and quickly put on a stern face. "I mean, the architecture of the room, is brilliant."

Poseidon smiled smugly at Athena who huffed in annoyance. "Why would you be in that place daughter?"

"Um…inspection," Annabeth thought of quickly.

**There were six empty bunk beds with silk sheets turned down. But there was no sign anyone had ever slept there. The place felt so sad and lonely, I was glad when Chiron put his hand on my shoulder and said, "Come along, Percy."**

**Most of the other cabins were crowded with campers.**

**Number five was bright red—a real nasty paint job, as if the color had been splashed on with buckets and fists.**

**The roof was lined with barbed wire. A stuffed wild boar's head hung over the doorway, and its eyes seemed to follow me. Inside I could see a bunch of mean-looking kids, both girls and boys, arm wrestling and arguing with each other while rock music blared. The loudest was a girl maybe thirteen or fourteen. She wore a size XXXL CAMP HALF-BLOOD T-shirt under a camouflage jacket. She zeroed in on me and gave me an evil sneer.**

**She reminded me of Nancy Bobofit, though the camper girl was much bigger and tougher looking, and her hair was long and stringy, and brown instead of red.**

**I kept walking, trying to stay clear of Chiron's hooves. "We haven't seen any other centaurs," I observed.**

**"No," said Chiron sadly. "My kinsmen are a wild and barbaric folk, I'm afraid. **

"PARTY PONIES RULE!" Yelled Hermes and Apollo.

**You might encounter them in the wilderness, or at major sporting events. But you won't see any here."**

"Too bad, they're the definition of awesome," Hermes frowned.

"You've met them?" Jason asked.

"Yeah they're crazy fun, "Apollo answered.

**"You said your name was Chiron. Are you really ..."**

**He smiled down at me. **_**"The **_**Chiron from the stories? Trainer of Hercules and all that? Yes, Percy, I am."**

_Hercules. _Artemis thought. _It's his fault Zoe doesn't trust men, though I'm glad she doesn't!_

**"But, shouldn't you be dead?"**

"Way to be subtle," Leo laughed.

**Chiron paused, as if the question intrigued him. "I honestly don't know about **_**should **_**be. The truth is, I **_**can't **_**be dead. You see, eons ago the gods granted my wish. I could continue the work I loved. I could be a teacher of heroes as long as humanity needed me. I gained much from that wish ... and I gave up much. But I'm still here, so I can only assume I'm still needed."**

**I thought about being a teacher for three thousand years. It wouldn't have made my Top Ten Things to Wish For list.**

**"Doesn't it ever get boring?"**

**"No, no," he said. "Horribly depressing, at times, but never boring."**

"Well that sucks," Nico said quietly.

**"Why depressing?"**

**Chiron seemed to turn hard of hearing again.**

**"Oh, look," he said. "Annabeth is waiting for us."**

"Of course," Athena frowned.

**The blond girl I'd met at the Big House was reading a book in front of the last cabin on the left, number eleven.**

"Still with the blonde girl," Annabeth mumbled. Percy, immediately sensing her discomfort, crawled to the next person who happened to be Nico.

"Oh…okay then," He mumbled as Percy crawled onto him. "Never thought this would happen."

**When we reached her, she looked me over critically, like she was still thinking about how much I drooled.**

"So much blackmail," Hermes grinned.

**I tried to see what she was reading, but I couldn't make out the title. I thought my dyslexia was acting up. Then I realized the title wasn't even English. The letters looked Greek to me. I mean, literally Greek.**

"That's because they were," Annabeth said. She turned to find Percy and Nico in a tug and pull war with Nico's skull ring.

"Come on Percy, so don't want it," Nico grumbled. He didn't want to admit it, but Percy has some awfully strong toddler arms.

"Mine," Percy clawed at it.

"Fine, take the ring," Nico sighed. He pulled it off and watched as Percy held the ring before throwing it into his little pool. "What was that for?"

Percy smiled before continuing his walk across the couch and onto the next person who happened to be Hermes and Apollo.

"Finally," Hermes sighed picking up Percy and putting him in between them. "We'll teach you how to have fun."

"Oh gods." Annabeth said.

**There were pictures of temples and statues and different kinds of columns, like those in an architecture book.**

"It was an architecture book."

**"Annabeth," Chiron said, "I have masters' archery class at noon. Would you take Percy from here?"**

**"Yes, sir."**

**"Cabin eleven," Chiron told me, gesturing toward the doorway. "Make yourself at home."**

**Out of all the cabins, eleven looked the most like a regular old summer camp cabin, with the emphasis on **_**old.**_

"Hey," Hermes, shouted.

**The threshold was worn down, the brown paint peeling. Over the doorway was one of those doctor's symbols, a winged pole with two snakes wrapped around it. What did they call it... ?**

"A caduceus," Athena and Annabeth said.

**A caduceus.**

Athena frowned.

**Inside, it was packed with people, both boys and girls, way more than the number of bunk beds. Sleeping bags were spread all over on the floor. It looked like a gym where the Red Cross had set up an evacuation center.**

_Was it really that bad?_ Hermes wondered.

**Chiron didn't go in. The door was too low for him. But when the campers saw him they all stood and bowed respectfully.**

**"Well, then," Chiron said. "Good luck, Percy. I'll see you at dinner."**

**He galloped away toward the archery range.**

**I stood in the doorway, looking at the kids. They weren't bowing anymore. They were staring at me, sizing me up. I knew this routine. I'd gone through it at enough schools.**

**"Well?" Annabeth prompted. "Go on."**

**So naturally I tripped coming in the door and made a total fool of myself.**

Everyone laughed.

"Naturally," Piper smiled.

**There were some snickers from the campers, but none of them said anything.**

**Annabeth announced, "Percy Jackson, meet cabin eleven."**

**"Regular or undetermined?" somebody asked.**

**I didn't know what to say, but Annabeth said, "Undetermined."**

**Everybody groaned.**

The gods looked at their children and felt a little ashamed.

**A guy who was a little older than the rest came forward.**

**"Now, now, campers. That's what we're here for. Welcome, Percy. You can have that spot on the floor, right over there."**

**The guy was about nineteen, and he looked pretty cool. He was tall and muscular, with short-cropped sandy hair and a friendly smile. He wore an orange tank top, cutoffs, sandals, and a leather necklace with five different-colored clay beads. The only thing unsettling about his appearance was a thick white scar that ran from just beneath his right eye to his jaw, like an old knife slash.**

Thalia quickly frowned realizing who it was. She felt a tear on the verge of falling but quickly pushed it aside.

Annabeth felt sad for Luke. He was so full of life but everything just went downwards after Thalia's incident and his quest.

**"This is Luke," Annabeth said, and her voice sounded different somehow. I glanced over and could've sworn she was blushing.**

"I WAS NOT," Annabeth shouted.

"OH MY GODS," Aphrodite shrieked. "I'm a genius, a love triangle, it's perfect. Annabeth like's Luke, Percy's likes Annabeth, and judging from my track record, I could bet you that Luke like's Annabeth."

Annabeth blushed but quickly dismissed it. She may have thought Luke like that for a little while, but she would have never acted on it. Percy on the other hand, well that's a different story.

"Wait a second," Poseidon said. "That means Percy gets hurt."

Aphrodite squealed but it was Athena who spoke. "Why do you care, would you want your son anywhere near my daughter?"

Poseidon thought for a second and watched as Percy ignored Hermes and Apollo's joke and quickly crawled back to Annabeth. _After all the people who have held him, he keeps going back to her._

"As long as Percy's happy, he could be friends with anyone he chooses," Poseidon concluded.

Annabeth sighed happily and picked up Percy and brought her head to his ear and whispered, "One down, one to go."

She looked on as her mother argued with Percy about them being friends.

**She saw me looking, and her expression hardened again. "He's your counselor for now."**

**"For now?" I asked.**

**"You're undetermined," Luke explained patiently. "They don't know what cabin to put you in, so you're here. Cabin eleven takes all newcomers, all visitors. Naturally, we would. Hermes, our patron, is the god of travelers."**

Hermes smiled at his son.

**I looked at the tiny section of floor they'd given me. I had nothing to put there to mark it as my own, no luggage, no clothes, no sleeping bag. Just the Minotaur's horn. I thought about setting that down, but then I remembered that Hermes was also the god of thieves.**

**I looked around at the campers' faces, some sullen and suspicious, some grinning stupidly, some eyeing me as if they were waiting for a chance to pick my pockets.**

**"How long will I be here?" I asked.**

**"Good question," Luke said. "Until you're determined."**

**"How long will that take?"**

**The campers all laughed.**

"Why is that funny?" Leo asked.

The demigods said nothing not wanting to spoil Percy's final wish.

**"Come on," Annabeth told me. "I'll show you the volleyball court."**

**"I've already seen it."**

**"Come on." She grabbed my wrist and dragged me outside. I could hear the kids of cabin eleven laughing behind me.**

"Always taking charge," Thalia smiled at her friend.

**When we were a few feet away, Annabeth said, "Jackson, you have to do better than that."**

"Ohh, last name," Nico mocked. "I'm terrified."

"You will be," Annabeth glared holding her knife close.

Nico gulped and shut up pretty quickly.

**"What?"**

**She rolled her eyes and mumbled under her breath, "I can't believe I thought you were the one."**

_"_Youstill think that Annabeth?" Asked Thalia

Annabeth stuck her tongue out at Thalia.

**"What's your problem?" I was getting angry now. "All I know is, I kill some bull guy—"**

**"Don't talk like that!" Annabeth told me. "You know how many kids at this camp wish they'd had your chance?"**

Everyone turned to Annabeth as if she were crazy.

"Why would you want that?" Piper asked. "I'd run in the opposite direction."

"I wasn't thinking straight that day," Annabeth mumbled.

**"To get killed?"**

**"To fight the Minotaur! What do you think we train for?"**

**I shook my head. "Look, if the thing I fought really was **_**the **_**Minotaur, the same one in the stories ..."**

**"Yes."**

**"Then there's only one."**

**"Yes."**

**"And he died, like, a gajillion years ago, right? Theseus killed him in the labyrinth. So ..."**

**"Monsters don't die, Percy. They can be killed. But they don't die."**

"That just confuses the heck out of me," Leo scratched his head.

**"Oh, thanks. That clears it up."**

"He has a point," Nico suggested.

"Quiet Nico," Annabeth snapped.

**"They don't have souls, like you and me. You can dispel them for a while, maybe even for a whole lifetime if you're lucky. But they are primal forces. Chiron calls them arche types. Eventually, they re-form."**

**I thought about Mrs. Dodds. "You mean if I killed one, accidentally, with a sword—"**

**"The Fur ... I mean, your math teacher. That's right. She's still out there. You just made her very, very mad."**

"Yes, very very mad," Nico agreed. "She actually doesn't hate anyone more then him."

**"How did you know about Mrs. Dodds?"**

**"You talk in your sleep."**

"Ah so you watch him in his sleep," Thalia giggled.

"Hmm, maybe you like both of them," Aphrodite thought.

"No she doesn't," Athena shouted.

**"You almost called her something. A Fury? They're Hades' torturers, right?"**

Poseidon glared at his brother who turned away only to meet a glare from Demeter.

**Annabeth glanced nervously at the ground, as if she expected it to open up and swallow her.**

**"You shouldn't call them by name, even here. We call them the Kindly Ones, if we have to speak of them at all."**

**"Look, is there anything we **_**can **_**say without it thundering?" I sounded whiny, even to myself, but right then I didn't care. **

**"Why do I have to stay in cabin eleven, anyway? Why is everybody so crowded together? There are plenty of empty bunks right over there."**

**I pointed to the first few cabins, and Annabeth turned pale. "You don't just choose a cabin, Percy. It depends on who your parents are. Or ... your parent."**

**She stared at me, waiting for me to get it.**

**"My mom is Sally Jackson," I said.**

Sally smiled but knew that's not what she meant.

**"She works at the candy store in Grand Central Station. At least, she used to."**

The gods stared at Sally yet again and felt bad for her. Hades, a little less, was more concerned as to why he took her in the first place.

**"I'm sorry about your mom, Percy. But that's not what I mean. I'm talking about your other parent. Your dad."**

**"He's dead. I never knew him."**

Poseidon looked down ashamed.

**Annabeth sighed. Clearly, she'd had this conversation before with other kids.**

"One that I hate having," Annabeth mumbled.

**"Your father's not dead, Percy."**

**"How can you say that? You know him?"**

Poseidon smiled at Annabeth. "She does now. Poseidon, God of the Seas, and you are?"

Annabeth blushed but quickly answered. "Annabeth Chase lord."

Athena frowned. "You don't have to play his stupid games Annabeth."

Poseidon turned to Athena. "Let her make her own decisions, all I did was introduce myself."

**"No, of course not."**

**"Then how can you say—"**

**"Because I know **_**you.**_ **You wouldn't be here if you weren't one of us."**

**"You don't know anything about me."**

"Actually, I know everything about you," She whispered into Percy's ear, and earned a giggle from him at the feel of air tickling his ear.

**"No?" She raised an eyebrow. "I bet you moved around from school to school. I bet you were kicked out of a lot of them."**

**"How—"**

**"Diagnosed with dyslexia. Probably ADHD, too."**

"You're going to embarrass him," Thalia said.

**I tried to swallow my embarrassment. "What does that have to do with anything?"**

"See."

**"Taken together, it's almost a sure sign. The letters float off the page when you read, right? That's because your mind is hardwired for ancient Greek.** **And the ADHD—you're impulsive, can't sit still in the classroom. That's your battle field reflexes. In a real fight, they'd keep you alive. As for the attention problems, that's because you see too much, Percy, not too little. Your senses are better than a regular mortal's. Of course the teachers want you medicated. Most of them are monsters. They don't want you seeing them for what they are."**

"Medicated," Nico repeated.

**"You sound like ... you went through the same thing?"**

**"Most of the kids here did. If you weren't like us, you couldn't have survived the Minotaur, much less the ambrosia and nectar."**

**"Ambrosia and nectar."**

**"The food and drink we were giving you to make you better. That stuff would've killed a normal kid. It would've turned your blood to fire and your bones to sand and you'd be dead. Face it. You're a half-blood."**

"The way you said it sounded awesome," Leo said.

**A half-blood.**

**I was reeling with so many questions I didn't know where to start.**

**Then a husky voice yelled, "Well! A newbie!"**

**I looked over. The big girl from the ugly red cabin was sauntering toward us. She had three other girls behind her, all big and ugly and mean looking like her, all wearing camo jackets.**

"A new character," Thalia smiled knowing who it was.

**"Clarisse," Annabeth sighed. "Why don't you go polish your spear or something?"**

**"Sure, Miss Princess," the big girl said. "So I can run you through with it Friday night."**

_**''Erre es korakas!"**_ **Annabeth said, which I somehow under stood was Greek for 'Go to the crows!' though I had a feeling it was a worse curse than it sounded. "You don't stand a chance."**

"You wish," Ares shouted.

"Don't yell at my daughter," Athena shouted back. "We'll see who's shouting at who when she wins whatever it is on Friday."

"Your on," Ares shouted back.

**"We'll pulverize you," Clarisse said, but her eye twitched. Perhaps she wasn't sure she could follow through on the threat. She turned toward me. "Who's this little runt?"**

Poseidon glared at Ares. "Teach your children to respect others."

"Teach yours to bulk up so we wouldn't have this problem," Ares shot back, a flame dancing in his eyes sensing a fight coming on.

Poseidon aimed his trident at the God of War. "You want to say that again with the tip of my trident at your neck?"

Ares backed down but would get in another word later.

**"Percy Jackson," Annabeth said, "meet Clarisse, Daughter of Ares."**

**I blinked. "Like ... the war god?"**

**Clarisse sneered. "You got a problem with that?"**

**"No," I said, recovering my wits. "It explains the bad smell."**

Ares glared at the book as everyone else laughed.

"And you say my kids should be respectful," Ares mumbled.

"Your child instigated, "Athena defended Percy not knowing why.

**Clarisse growled. "We got an initiation ceremony for newbies, Prissy."**

**"Percy."**

**"Whatever. Come on, I'll show you."**

**"Clarisse—" Annabeth tried to say.**

**"Stay out of it, wise girl."**

"So that's where his nickname came from," The older demigods said.

**Annabeth looked pained, but she did stay out of it,** **and I didn't really want her help. I was the new kid. I had to earn my own rep.**

_Good._ Jason thought. _He has to earn his place at the Roman camp._

**I handed Annabeth my minotaur horn and got ready to fight, but before I knew it, Clarisse had me by the neck and was dragging me toward a cinder-block building that I knew immediately was the bathroom.**

**I was kicking and punching. I'd been in plenty of fights before, but this big girl Clarisse had hands like iron. **

**She dragged me into the girls' bathroom. There was a line of toilets on one side and a line of shower stalls down the other. It smelled just like any public bathroom, and I was thinking—as much as I **_**could **_**think with Clarisse ripping my hair out—that if this place belonged to the gods, they should've been able to afford classier johns.**

**Clarisse's friends were all laughing, and I was trying to find the strength I'd used to fight the Minotaur, but it just wasn't there.**

**"Like he's 'Big Three' material," Clarisse said as she pushed me toward one of the toilets.**

"He is child," Athena said sternly. "It isn't wise of you to test his limitations."

**"Yeah, right. Minotaur probably fell over laughing, he was so stupid looking."**

**Her friends snickered.**

**Annabeth stood in the corner, watching through her fingers.**

"That's not true," Annabeth said angrily.

**Clarisse bent me over on my knees and started pushing my head toward the toilet bowl. It reeked like rusted pipes and, well, like what goes into toilets. I strained to keep my head up. I was looking at the scummy water, thinking, I will not go into that. I won't.**

"He's stubborn huh," Piper noticed.

"You have no idea," Thalia answered.

"Just like his father," Athena whispered to Artemis who smiled slightly.

**Then something happened. I felt a tug in the pit of my stomach. **

Poseidon started to laugh as he knew what was going to happen.

"What's so funny?" Zeus asked.

Poseidon pointed at Ares. "His daughter is about to get it."

**I heard the plumbing rumble, the pipes shudder. Clarisse's grip on my hair loosened. Water shot out of the toilet, making an arc straight over my head, and the next thing I knew, I was sprawled on the bathroom tiles with Clarisse screaming behind me.**

Everyone broke into a round of laughs while Ares mumbled threats.

**I turned just as water blasted out of the toilet again, hitting Clarisse straight in the face so hard it pushed her down onto her butt.**

"Gods, I wish we'd filmed that." Said Travis

"Where did you come from?" asked Annabeth

"The elevator."

"Anybody else?"

"Katie, Connor, and Chiron."

"Cool."

**The water stayed on her like the spray from a fire hose, pushing her backward into a shower stall.**

**She struggled, gasping, and her friends started coming toward her.**

**But then the other toilets exploded, too, and six more streams of toilet water blasted them back. The showers acted up, too, and together all the fixtures sprayed the camouflage girls right out of the bathroom, spinning them around like pieces of garbage being washed away.**

"That's why they were wet," Katie remembered.

**As soon as they were out the door, I felt the tug in my gut lessen, and the water shut off as quickly as it had started.**

**The entire bathroom was flooded. Annabeth hadn't been spared.**

This time it was Annabeth who glared while everyone laughed at her.

"Not the happiest time of my life," she grumbled.

"How didn't you realize he was the son of Poseidon then," Thalia asked.

Annabeth shrugged. "Honestly, I was thinking about something else, that'll be mentioned in the next chapter or so."

**She was dripping wet, but she hadn't been pushed out the door. She was standing in exactly the same place, staring at me in shock.**

**I looked down and realized I was sitting in the only dry spot in the whole room. There was a circle of dry floor around me. I didn't have one drop of water on my clothes. Nothing.**

"That's wicked," Leo awed.

**I stood up, my legs shaky.**

**Annabeth said, "How did you ..."**

**"I don't know."**

"Typical answer from Percy," Connor laughed.

**We walked to the door. Outside, Clarisse and her friends were sprawled in the mud, and a bunch of other campers had gathered around to gawk. Clarisse's hair was flattened across her face. Her camouflage jacket was sopping and she smelled like sewage. She gave me a look of absolute hatred. "You are dead, new boy. You are totally dead."**

"A threat that has yet to be accomplished," Travis sang.

**I probably should have let it go, but I said, "You want to gargle with toilet water again, Clarisse? Close your mouth."**

"Nice comeback Perce," Apollo laughed.

**Her friends had to hold her back. They dragged her toward cabin five, while the other campers made way to avoid her flailing feet.**

**Annabeth stared at me. I couldn't tell whether she was just grossed out or angry at me for dousing her.**

"Both," She said.

**"What?" I demanded. "What are you thinking?"**

**"I'm thinking," she said, "that I want you on my team for capture the flag."**


	9. Chapter 9

**I dont own pj**

* * *

Everybody went to get dinner. Annabeth was the last one in the thrown room when there was aflash of light a boy about the age of 17 with jet black hair and tattered clothes appeared. Annabeth rushed over to him and saw a face she recgonized.

"Percy," she breathed.

"Hey Wise Girl." That's when Annabeth started yelling.

"Where the hell have you been for the past six months? I had a heart attack **(A/N ironically i'm listening to heart attack by one direction while writing this.)** when you went missing. Do you know how woorried I've been? I spent day and night looking for you." As Annabeth said each word she was punching. Thalia went into the thrown room to see why Annabeth was yelling and when she saw Percy she marched to him and threw a lightning bolt at him. Both Annabeth and Thalia were now yelling at him and greek. Chiron went to see wha was happening and when he saw Percy he grabbed Thalia and Annabeth before they could kill him. Everybody gathered into the thrown room and when Grover, Nico, Travis, Connor, and Katie saw him they ran over and hugged him. After Percy explained everything that had happened they went to get dinner. Annabeth was calmer and when Percy and her were the last ones in the thrown room Annabeth ran over to him and they kissed. Aphrodite knew they kissed as soon as it happened and when they did she went into the thrown room and skipped around them saying "I knew it! I knew it! I knew it!


	10. Food up in smoke

**I**

* * *

**O**wn

* * *

**N**othing

* * *

"**My Dinner Goes up in Smoke," **Percy read.

"Well that sucks," Conner said. "I love dinner."

**Word of the bathroom incident spread immediately. Wherever I went, campers pointed at me and murmured something about toilet water. Or maybe they were just staring at Annabeth, who was still pretty much dripping wet.**

"Gods I hate that feeling," Annabeth muttered.

**She showed me a few more places: the metal shop (where kids were forging their own swords), the arts-and-crafts room (where satyrs were sandblasting a giant marble statue of a goat-man),**

"That's Pan, not a goat-boy," Grover sighed. "He's lucky he didn't say that in Pan's presence."

"He's met Pan?" Dionysus. "But he's disappeared."

Grover shrugged. "We found him."

**and the climbing wall, which actually consisted of two facing walls that shook violently, dropped boulders, sprayed lava, and clashed together if you didn't get to the top fast enough.**

"I hate that wall," Jason said. "Only Leo likes it."

"Cause it's awesome," Leo said with wide eyes.

**Finally we returned to the canoeing lake, where the trail led back to the cabins.**

**"I've got training to do," Annabeth said flatly. "Dinner's at seven-thirty. Just follow your cabin to the mess hall."**

**"Annabeth, I'm sorry about the toilets."**

**"Whatever."**

"He's trying to be sympathetic daughter of Athena," Hestia smiled at her. "Poor boy's just learning his powers."

"I know," Annabeth blushed. She looked at Percy. "He's doing fine now."

She pointed to the mini pool and watched as the water started making shapes from squares to triangles in the water. Percy had his arms stretched out and a serious looking face.

When Percy saw baby Percy he laughed.

**"It wasn't my fault."**

"Actually it was," Katie pointed out.

**She looked at me skeptically, and I realized it **_**was **_**my fault. I'd made water shoot out of the bathroom fixtures. I didn't understand how. But the toilets had responded to me. I had become one with the plumbing.**

"One with the plumbing," Travis repeated. He thought for a second before breaking out into a huge grin. "We'd make a killing with Percy if we started a plumbing business."

Conner thought for a second and caught on to his brother's idea. "You're right. We could have Percy mentally break the pipes purposely, then show up at the door and give the pipes a quick fix."

The Stolls smiled at their idea before Annabeth interrupted.

"Do any of you even know how to fix something like that?"

"Not the point," Travis ignored. "We'll just take a Hephaestus kid with us, its full proof."

"It's illegal," Hera pointed out.

The boys thought before Conner smiled at the Queen of the gods, "Perfect!"

''And I would never do it."

**"You need to talk to the Oracle," Annabeth said.**

**"Who?"**

**"Not who. What.** **The Oracle. I'll ask Chiron."**

**I stared into the lake, wishing somebody would give me a straight answer for once.**

"He has a point," Katie said. "Everyone's just been giving him clues and not the whole picture. Must suck to not know what's happening."

"He never knows what's happening regardless," Thalia smiled.

**I wasn't expecting anybody to be looking back at me from the bottom, so my heart skipped a beat when I noticed two teenage girls sitting cross-legged at the base of the pier, about twenty feet below.**

**They wore blue jeans and shimmering green T-shirts, and their brown hair floated loose around their shoulders as minnows darted in and out. They smiled and waved as if I were a long-lost friend.**

"They might as well be," Hades grunted.

**I didn't know what else to do. I waved back.**

"Of course you did," Annabeth fumed.

"Jealous are we," Aphrodite sang.

Athena glared but Annabeth answered a quick, "No."

**"Don't encourage them," Annabeth warned. "Naiads are terrible flirts."**

"Gods it so obvious," Aphrodite said. "Either you like him or you at least find him cute, so which is it?"

Annabeth blushed furiously as everyone stared at her. _Gods, what do I say now?_

"Annabeth, which is it?" Athena asked her daughter with a straight face.

"Uh…he's um, he's my…"Annabeth stuttered. "He's my boyfriend."

"I knew it." Yelled Aphrodite. Athena had a look of disgust on her face but then she remebered how Percy wasn't like most boys and decided to give him a chance.

Annabeth blushed and covered her face in Percy's hair as everyone started laughing. **(baby percy will be B-Percy. reg percy will be percy.)**

**"Naiads," I repeated, feeling completely overwhelmed. "That's it. I want to go home now."**

"Right, a fury, the Minotaur, God of Wine, and a centaur, and he freaks out over a naiad, wow," Nico wondered.

**Annabeth frowned. "Don't you get it, Percy? You **_**are **_**home. This is the only safe place on earth for kids like us."**

**"You mean, mentally disturbed kids?"**

"So now we're disturbed?" Piper asked. She looked around the group. "Maybe Leo, but us?"

"HEY," Leo shouted but was ignored.

"I was confused."

**"I mean **_**not human. **_**Not totally human, anyway. Half-human."**

**"Half-human and half-what?"**

"Really?" Nico asked. "Even I'm not that clueless."

**"I think you know."**

**I didn't want to admit it, but I was afraid I did. I felt a tingling in my limbs, a sensation I sometimes felt when my mom talked about my dad.**

**"God," I said. "Half-god."**

**Annabeth nodded. "Your father isn't dead, Percy. He's one of the Olympians."**

**"That's ... crazy."**

**"Is it? What's the most common thing gods did in the old stories? They ran around falling in love with humans and having kids with them. Do you think they've changed their habits in the last few millennia?"**

"All the woman glared at the gods, but the gods equally glared back.

"You do it too," Poseidon eyed Demeter, Athena, and Aphrodite. "At least I did it once."

"But you swore on an oath," Athena argued.

"Who cares, I wanted Percy, and it isn't fair that you all get kids and we're limited to none."

"Your oath, not ours," Demeter pointed out.

Zeus and Poseidon glared at Hades. "Maybe if he didn't want to start wars all the time, than we wouldn't have sworn on the oath."

**"But those are just—" I almost said **_**myths **_**again. Then I remembered Chiron's warning that in two thousand years, **_**I **_**might be considered a myth.**

**"But if all the kids here are half-gods—"**

**"Demigods," Annabeth said. "That's the official term. Or half-bloods."**

"I like demigods," Apollo said. "The word 'god' is in there."

**"Then who's your dad?"**

**Her hands tightened around the pier railing. I got the feeling I'd just trespassed on a sensitive subject.**

"Very," Annabeth whispered while Athena eyed her daughter in sympathy.

**"My dad is a professor at West Point," she said. "I haven't seen him since I was very small. He teaches American history."**

"So that's what caught your eye," Poseidon concluded.

"Yes, why are you curious?" Athena answered back.

Poseidon shrugged.

Apollo sensing the tension, leaned to Hermes and whispered, "I give you three guesses on to who is going to brush up on their American History after we're done these books."

Hermes and Apollo snickered and stared at Poseidon.

**"He's human."**

**"What? You assume it has to be a male god who finds a human female attractive? How sexist is that?"**

"Very," Artemis agreed. "Men just think like that."

**"Who's your mom, then?"**

**"Cabin six."**

"How's he supposed to know that?" Thalia looked at her friend in wonder. "Not everyone's as smart as you Annie."

**"Meaning?"**

**Annabeth straightened. "Athena. Goddess of wisdom and battle."**

Athena smiled at her daughter.

**Okay, I thought. Why not?**

"What's that supposed to mean?" Both mother and daughter shouted.

"Just that it explained why Annabeth was always reading."

**"And my dad?"**

**"Undetermined," Annabeth said, "like I told you before. Nobody knows."**

**"Except my mother. She knew."**

Sally smiled at Poseidon.

**"Maybe not, Percy. Gods don't always reveal their identities."**

"I did," Poseidon smiled at Sally.

"Which you shouldn't have," Zeus shot back.

Poseidon rolled his eyes. "Shut up. No one asked you."

**"My dad would have. He loved her."**

Poseidon winked at Sally who blushed.

"Aphrodite on the other hand squealed and shot a beaming smile at both of them.

**Annabeth gave me a cautious look. She didn't want to burst my bubble.**

"He was right, but thankfully I didn't open my mouth," Annabeth said. Annabeth snuggled up to Percy who kissed the top of her head.

**"Maybe you're right. Maybe he'll send a sign. That's the only way to know for sure: your father has to send you a sign claiming you as his son. Sometimes it happens."**

**"You mean sometimes it doesn't?"**

The gods stared everywhere but at their children.

"And that was your big mistake," Thalia concluded.

"To what?" Zeus said a little angrily. He didn't like someone saying he made a mistake, even his own daughter.

"You'll see, but it's pretty much a main reason to the whole story."

**Annabeth ran her palm along the rail. "The gods are busy. They have a lot of kids and they don't always ... Well, sometimes they don't care about us, Percy. They ignore us."**

Annabeth didn't look up at her mother's sympathetic look. She didn't want them to take pity on the demigods, just acknowledge them like their children and not the result of a one night stand.

"Do you really feel like that Annabeth?" Athena asked her daughter, hating herself for making her daughter even having the thought. "Do all of you feel like that?"

Most mumbled a 'yes'.

Annabeth noticing the gods sad looks, except Dionysus and Ares, decided to make them at ease.

"But not anymore," She threw out. "You guys changed your ways."

**I thought about some of the kids I'd seen in the Hermes cabin, teenagers who looked sullen and depressed, as if they were waiting for a call that would never come. I'd known kids like that at Yancy Academy, shuffled off to boarding school by rich parents who didn't have the time to deal with them. But gods should behave better.**

The gods looked down again.

"You will," Katie ensured them.

**"So I'm stuck here," I said. "That's it? For the rest of my life?"**

**"It depends," Annabeth said. "Some campers only stay the summer. If you're a child of Aphrodite or Demeter,** **you're probably not a real powerful force. **

Demeter, Aphrodite, Katie, and Piper all glared at Annabeth.

"Sorry," She said truthfully. "No disrespect to you Lady Demeter and Lady Aphrodite, but your children don't have a powerful scent, I didn't mean you aren't powerful."

The four girls smiled happy with that answer.

**The monsters might ignore you, so you can get by with a few months of summer training and live in the mortal world the rest of the year. But for some of us, it's too dangerous to leave. We're year-rounders. In the mortal world, we attract monsters. They sense us. They come to challenge us. Most of the time, they'll ignore us until we're old enough to cause trouble—about ten or eleven years old, but after that, most demigods either make their way here, or they get killed off. **

Everyone felt bad for the demigods who never made it.

**A few manage to survive in the outside world and become famous. Believe me, if I told you the names, you'd know them. Some don't even realize they're demigods. But very, very few are like that."**

**"So monsters can't get in here?"**

**Annabeth shook her head. "Not unless they're intentionally stocked in the woods or specially summoned by somebody on the inside."**

**"Why would anybody want to summon a monster?"**

_Luke. _Annabeth thought. _Nearly cost me my boyfriend's life_. Percy knew what Annabeth was thinking and whispered that everything was okay now.

**"Practice fights. Practical jokes."**

The Stolls looked down in embarrassment.

**"Practical jokes?"**

"In our defense, we stopped that after the hell hound incident," Conner threw out for good measure.

**"The point is, the borders are sealed to keep mortals and monsters out. From the outside, mortals look into the valley and see nothing unusual, just a strawberry farm."**

**"So ... you're a year-rounder?"**

**Annabeth nodded. From under the collar of her T-shirt she pulled a leather necklace with five clay beads of different colors. It was just like Luke's, except Annabeth's also had a big gold ring strung on it, like a college ring.**

**"I've been here since I was seven," she said. "Every August, on the last day of summer session, you get a bead for surviving another year. I've been here longer than most of the counselors, and they're all in college."**

**"Why did you come so young?"**

Annabeth frowned while Athena shot her daughter a look.

**She twisted the ring on her necklace. "None of your business."**

"Ouch, don't need to snap," Thalia said.

"Sorry," Annabeth apologized.

**"Oh." I stood there for a minute in uncomfortable silence. "So ... I could just walk out of here right now if I wanted to?"**

"Wouldn't let you," Annabeth squeezed Percy who leaned into her touch. "You are going nowhere without me." She whispered.

**"It would be suicide, but you could, with Mr. D's or Chiron's permission. But they wouldn't give permission until the end of the summer session unless ..."**

**"Unless?"**

**"You were granted a quest. But that hardly ever happens. The last time …"**

**Her voice trailed off. I could tell from her tone that the last time hadn't gone well.**

"Not at all," Annabeth said.

**"Back in the sick room," I said, "when you were feeding me that stuff—"**

**"Ambrosia."**

**"Yeah. You asked me something about the summer solstice."**

**Annabeth's shoulders tensed. "So you **_**do **_**know some thing?"**

"No he doesn't," Thalia said.

**"Well... no. Back at my old school, I overheard Grover and Chiron talking about it. Grover mentioned the summer solstice. He said something like we didn't have much time, because of the deadline. What did that mean?"**

**She clenched her fists.**

**"I wish I knew. Chiron and the satyrs, they know, but they won't tell me. Something is wrong in Olympus, something pretty major. Last time I was there, everything seemed so **_**normal**_**."**

The gods perked up.

**"You've been to Olympus?"**

**"Some of us year-rounders—Luke and Clarisse and I and a few others—we took a field trip during winter solstice. That's when the gods have their big annual council."**

**"But... how did you get there?"**

**"The Long Island Railroad, of course. You get off at Penn Station. Empire State Building, special elevator to the six hundredth floor." She looked at me like she was sure I must know this already.**

"Really Annabeth?" Nico looked at her.

**"You **_**are **_**a New Yorker, right?"**

"There are millions of people in New York, I bet they don't know where it is," Nico pointed out.

"Stop being a smart ass Nico," Annabeth glared. "That's my job."

"I thought your job was to make sure I don't leave again." said Percy playfully.

**"Oh, sure." As far as I knew, there were only a hundred and two floors in the Empire State Building, but I decided not to point that out.**

**"Right after we visited," Annabeth continued, "the weather got weird, as if the gods had started fighting. A couple of times since, I've overheard satyrs talking. The best I can figure out is that something important was stolen. **

Athena looked around to see if anyone picked up on that.

"What could be stolen that would have everyone on edge?" Demeter asked.

Zeus, who was in deep thought, thought back to the freak weather involving himself and his brother.

_The lightning Thief. _He thought, and a huge light bulb went off in his head.

His master bolt appeared in his hands and directly pointed it at Poseidon. "YOU STOLE MY MASTER BOLT!"

Poseidon, realizing everything, pulled his trident at the ready, prepared for a fight. "AND YOU THINK PERCY TOOK IT, DON'T YOU?"

"Lords, please," Chiron tried to break it up, but to no avail, they stood up off their thrones.

"If I find out you took it, I'll kill the boy where you stand!" Zeus shouted.

"You're a fool brother," Poseidon glared back. "Touch him and you'll wish father ate you after I'm through with you!"

"SILENCE," Hera yelled. "We don't even know what's going on, just continue!"

Both gods glared before returning to their thrones.

Annabeth was holding on to both Percy's ver tightly.

**And if it isn't returned by summer solstice, there's going to be trouble. When you came, I was hoping ... I mean— Athena can get along with just about anybody, except for Ares.**

Athena and Ares glared at each other.

**And of course she's got the rivalry with Poseidon.**

Athena shot Poseidon a look, but quickly backed off when she saw his pissed off state.

"Well clearly she doesn't have that problem with Percy," Thalia whispered to Grover who started to laugh.

**But, I mean, aside from that, I thought we could work together. I thought you might know something."**

"He knows nothing," Nico laughed. "Except everything about the ocean and fighting."

**I shook my head. I wished I could help her, **

Most smiled at Percy's will to help someone.

**but I felt too hungry and tired and mentally overloaded to ask any more questions.**

"Of course," Artemis said. _Typical man._

**"I've got to get a quest," Annabeth muttered to her self. "I'm **_**not **_**too young. If they would just tell me the problem …"**

"You are too young!" Athena shouted.

"I'v already been on three, fought in a war, and was rescued by a quest." Annabeth smiled at Percy when she remembered he had been the one who left camp without permission to save her.

**I could smell barbecue smoke coming from somewhere nearby. Annabeth must've heard my stomach growl. She told me to go on, she'd catch me later. I left her on the pier, tracing her finger across the rail as if drawing a battle plan.**

Annabeth blushed while everyone laughed.

**Back at cabin eleven, everybody was talking and horsing around, waiting for dinner. For the first time, I noticed that a lot of the campers had similar features: sharp noses, upturned eyebrows, mischievous smiles. They were the kind of kids that teachers would peg as troublemakers. Thankfully, nobody paid much attention to me as I walked over to my spot on the floor and plopped down with my minotaur horn.**

**The counselor, Luke, came over. He had the Hermes family resemblance, too. It was marred by that scar on his right cheek, but his smile was intact.**

**"Found you a sleeping bag," he said. "And here, I stole you some toiletries from the camp store."**

Hermes smiled at his son, but didn't notice the glares from his other three sons.

**I couldn't tell if he was kidding about the stealing part.**

**I said, "Thanks."**

**"No prob." Luke sat next to me, pushed his back against the wall. "Tough first day?"**

**"I don't belong here," I said. "I don't even believe in gods."**

"none of us did," All the demigods said.

**"Yeah," he said. "That's how we all started. Once you start believing in them? It doesn't get any easier."**

**The bitterness in his voice surprised me, because Luke seemed like a pretty easygoing guy. He looked like he could handle just about anything.**

**"So your dad is Hermes?" I asked.**

**He pulled a switchblade out of his back pocket, and for a second I thought he was going to gut me, **

The Stolls glared and Annabeth tightened her hold on B-Percy. _Better not_. Percy wrapped his arms around Annabeth as if to tell her it's okay.

**but he just scraped the mud off the sole of his sandal. "Yeah. Hermes."**

**"The wing-footed messenger guy."**

"Not my usual introduction, but hey, it's better than being called a cherub," Hermes laughed at Dionysus.

**"That's him. Messengers. Medicine. Travelers, merchants, thieves. Anybody who uses the roads. That's why you're here, enjoying cabin eleven's hospitality. Hermes isn't picky about who he sponsors."**

Hermes smiled disappeared.

**I figured Luke didn't mean to call me a nobody. He just had a lot on his mind.**

_Probably did._ Nico thought._ Anyway to bring down Perce._

Thalia frowned. Luke may have been a great friend at a time, and possibly more, but Percy was like a brother, just like Jason, and she didn't like anyone picking on him other than her and Annabeth.

**"You ever meet your dad?" I asked.**

**"Once."**

"Really?" Hermes wondered.

Only Annabeth and Thalia knew about Luke going back home when he was fourteen, but they didn't speak up.

**I waited, thinking that if he wanted to tell me, he'd tell me. Apparently, he didn't. I wondered if the story had any thing to do with how he got his scar.**

"Did it?" Hermes asked concerned.

"No," The demigods said simply.

**Luke looked up and managed a smile. "Don't worry about it, Percy. The campers here, they're mostly good people. After all, we're extended family, right? We take care of each other."**

"Bullshit," The Stolls whispered.

Katie and Annabeth smacked but not hard, they too knew Luke wasn't completely honest.

_Liar._ Annabeth thought. _No wonder Percy hated it when I talked about Luke, Luke had seemed like a great guy but basically pulled the rug out under Percy's feet, and I was too blind to see it._

**He seemed to understand how lost I felt, and I was grateful for that, because an older guy like him—even if he was a counselor—should've steered clear of an uncool middle-schooler like me. But Luke had welcomed me into the cabin. He'd even stolen me some toiletries, which was the nicest thing anybody had done for me all day.**

"All an act," Katie mumbled low enough for the gods not to hear. "Guys really playing Percy hard."

Thalia glared but knew she was right.

"Nice boy you have Hermes," Hestia smiled.

"Thank you," He smiled brightly.

**I decided to ask him my last big question, the one that had been bothering me all afternoon. "Clarisse, from Ares, was joking about me being 'Big Three' material. Then Annabeth ... twice, she said I might be 'the one.' She said I should talk to the Oracle. What was that all about?"**

**Luke folded his knife. "I hate prophecies."**

"Don't we all," All the demigods said.

Artemis smiled. "I just hate the person who's in charge of prophecies."

Everyone laughed as Apollo sulked.

**"What do you mean?"**

**His face twitched around the scar. "Let's just say I messed things up for everybody else. The last two years, ever since my trip to the Garden of the Hesperides went sour, Chiron hasn't allowed any more quests. **

"He went on a quest?" Hermes asked a little scared but a little proud.

"Yeah," They answered simply.

**Annabeth's been dying to get out into the world. She pestered Chiron so much he finally told her he already knew her fate. He'd had a prophecy from the Oracle. He wouldn't tell her the whole thing, but he said Annabeth wasn't destined to go on a quest yet. She had to wait until...somebody special came to the camp."**

**"Somebody special?"**

**"Don't worry about it, kid," Luke said. "Annabeth wants to think every new camper who comes through here is the omen she's been waiting for. Now, come on, it's dinnertime."**

"Hey," Annabeth shouted. She didn't like Luke talking about her like that.

**The moment he said it, a horn blew in the distance. Somehow, I knew it was a conch shell, even though I'd never heard one before.**

"Another hint that he's your son," Athena pointed out.

**Luke yelled, "Eleven, fall in!"**

**The whole cabin, about twenty of us, filed into the commons yard. We lined up in order of seniority, so of course I was dead last. Campers came from the other cabins, too, except for the three empty cabins at the end, and cabin eight, which had looked normal in the daytime, but was now starting to glow silver as the sun went down.**

Artemis smiled.

**We marched up the hill to the mess hall pavilion. Satyrs joined us from the meadow. Naiads emerged from the canoeing lake. A few other girls came out of the woods— and when I say out of the woods, I mean **_**straight **_**out of the woods. I saw one girl, about nine or ten years old, melt from the side of a maple tree and come skipping up the hill.**

Grover sighed missing Juniper.

''Her name was Maple."

**In all, there were maybe a hundred campers, a few dozen satyrs, and a dozen assorted wood nymphs and naiads.**

**At the pavilion, torches blazed around the marble columns. A central fire burned in a bronze brazier the size of a bathtub. Each cabin had its own table, covered in white cloth trimmed in purple. Four of the tables were empty, but cabin eleven's was way overcrowded. I had to squeeze on to the edge of a bench with half my butt hanging off.**

Hermes sighed. _Why couldn't we just claim them as ours?_

**I saw Grover sitting at table twelve with Mr. D, a few satyrs, and a couple of plump blond boys who looked just like Mr. D. Chiron stood to one side, the picnic table being way too small for a centaur.**

**Annabeth sat at table six with a bunch of serious-looking athletic kids, all with her gray eyes and honey-blond hair.**

Athena smiled at the thought of her children.

**Clarisse sat behind me at Ares's table. She'd apparently gotten over being hosed down, because she was laughing and belching right alongside her friends.**

**Finally, Chiron pounded his hoof against the marble floor of the pavilion, and everybody fell silent. He raised a glass. "To the gods!"**

"To the gods!" Apollo shouted.

**Everybody else raised their glasses. "To the gods!"**

Apollo stepped up but was brought down by Artemis's glare.

**Wood nymphs came forward with platters of food: grapes, apples, strawberries, cheese, fresh bread, and yes, barbecue! My glass was empty, but Luke said, "Speak to it. Whatever you want—nonalcoholic, of course."**

"Too bad," Dionysus sighed.

**I said, "Cherry Coke."**

**The glass filled with sparkling caramel liquid.**

**Then I had an idea. "**_**Blue **_**Cherry Coke."**

Sally smiled at her son's choice.

**The soda turned a violent shade of cobalt.**

**I took a cautious sip. Perfect.**

**I drank a toast to my mother.**

Sally began to cry a little and was comforted by Hera who appeared on the sofa next to her in human size and gave her a hug.

"You have quite the boy," Hera whispered to her.

"I know," Sally whispered back.

**She's not gone, I told myself. Not permanently, anyway. She's in the Underworld. And if that's a real place, then someday...**

"We'll see little hero," Hades smirked.

Jason, leaning to Piper and Leo whispered, "He's nuts."

"I know," Leo agreed. "I love him already!"

**"Here you go, Percy," Luke said, handing me a platter of smoked brisket.**

**I loaded my plate and was about to take a big bite when I noticed everybody getting up, carrying their plates toward the fire in the center of the pavilion.**

**I wondered if they were going for dessert or something.**

**"Come on," Luke told me.**

**As I got closer, I saw that everyone was taking a portion of their meal and dropping it into the fire, the ripest straw berry, the juiciest slice of beef, the warmest, most buttery roll.**

**Luke murmured in my ear, "Burnt offerings for the gods. They like the smell."**

"Gods do we," Apollo imagined the smell right now. "I'm starving."

"We just ate," Hephaestus pointed out.

**"You're kidding."**

**His look warned me not to take this lightly, but I couldn't help wondering why an immortal, all-powerful being would like the smell of burning food.**

"It is a little weird," Piper agreed. "I mean, the smell is good and all, but not really satisfying."

**Luke approached the fire, bowed his head, and tossed in a cluster of fat red grapes. "Hermes."**

**I was next.**

**I wished I knew what god's name to say.**

Poseidon smiled sadly.

**Finally, I made a silent plea. **_**Whoever you are, tell me. Please.**_

_I will Percy, I just know it. _Poseidon thought.

**I scraped a big slice of brisket into the flames.**

**When I caught a whiff of the smoke, I didn't gag.**

**It smelled nothing like burning food. It smelled of hot chocolate and fresh-baked brownies, hamburgers on the grill and wildflowers, and a hundred other good things that shouldn't have gone well together, but did. I could almost believe the gods could live off that smoke.**

"Apollo tried, but I caught him pigging out at night."Hermes smiled.

**When everybody had returned to their seats and finished eating their meals, Chiron pounded his hoof again for our attention.**

**Mr. D got up with a huge sigh. "Yes, I suppose I'd better say hello to all you brats.**

The gods glared at Dionysus who just shrugged.

"Don't bother, it wouldn't be camp without his rudeness," Annabeth said.

Dionysus smiled. "Thank you Annabeth."

**Well, hello. Our activities director, Chiron, says the next capture the flag is Friday. Cabin five presently holds the laurels."**

**A bunch of ugly cheering rose from the Ares table.**

Ares cheered but quickly stopped when everyone was just staring at him.

**"Personally," Mr. D continued, "I couldn't care less, but congratulations. Also, I should tell you that we have a new camper today. Peter Johnson."**

"Honestly?" Poseidon looked over at Dionysus. "It's not that hard."

"That's if you care," Dionysus pointed out. "Which I don't."

**Chiron murmured something.**

**"Er, Percy Jackson," Mr. D corrected. "That's right. Hurrah, and all that. Now run along to your silly campfire. Go on."**

"Nice speech," Hades said. "Though I probably would have smacked one around a little, for good measure."

**Everybody cheered. We all headed down toward the amphitheater, where Apollo's cabin led a sing-along.**

"Obviously," Artemis said, while Apollo winked at Will.

**We sang camp songs about the gods and ate s'mores and joked around, and the funny thing was, I didn't feel that anyone was staring at me anymore. I felt that I was home.**

**Later in the evening, when the sparks from the campfire were curling into a starry sky, the conch horn blew again, and we all filed back to our cabins. I didn't realize how exhausted I was until I collapsed on my borrowed sleeping bag.**

**My fingers curled around the Minotaur's horn. I thought about my mom, but I had good thoughts: her smile, the bedtime stories she would read me when I was a kid, the way she would tell me not to let the bedbugs bite.**

Ares thought about laughing, but saw Sally start to cry again as Hera brought her into another hug and thought better of it.

**When I closed my eyes, I fell asleep instantly.**

**That was my first day at Camp Half-Blood.**

**I wish I'd known how briefly I would get to enjoy my new home.**

"Well, on that happy note I think I'd like to read." Said Chiron.


	11. Capturing a flag

"We** Capture a Flag," **Chiron read.

**The next few days I settled into a routine that felt almost normal, if you don't count the fact that I was getting lessons from satyrs, nymphs, and a centaur.**

**Each morning I took Ancient Greek from Annabeth, **

"Honestly daughter," Athena sighed. "You guys are practically attached to the hip."

Annabeth blushed as Thalia leaned into Nico and Grover.

"Usually it's by the mouth," she whispered to them.

**and we talked about the gods and goddesses in the present tense, which was kind of weird. I discovered Annabeth was right about my dyslexia: Ancient Greek wasn't that hard for me to read. At least, no harder than English.**

**After a couple of mornings, I could stumble through a few lines of Homer without too much headache.**

**The rest of the day, I'd rotate through outdoor activities, looking for something I was good at. Chiron tried to teach me archery,**

"Well that's not good," Travis laughed. He looked at Chiron. "Sucks to be you."

Chiron grimaced, remembering his times spent in the infirmary after being shot by Percy countless times.

**but we found out pretty quick I wasn't any good with a bow and arrow. He didn't complain, even when he had to desnag a stray arrow out of his tail.**

"Well Perce, you're defiantly not mine," Apollo smirked at Percy who was still sitting on Annabeth's lap."

"I doubt he wants to be yours," Artemis grumbled while smacking Apollo in the back of the head."

Apollo was about to complain but was interrupted by Percy's small laughs and tiny claps.

"Again. Again. Again," He chanted looking at Artemis with doe like eyes.

Artemis smiled and gladly hit her brother yet again.

She turned to Poseidon with the same smile. "I like him uncle!"

"Up, up." B-Percy says to Artemis.

**Foot racing? No good either. The wood-nymph instructors left me in the dust. They told me not to worry about it. They'd had centuries of practice running away from lovesick gods.**

The goddess glared at the gods who looked anywhere but at them.

**But still, it was a little humiliating to be slower than a tree.**

"It's embarrassing," Conner shuttered. "I swear, they overlap me in a race."

**And wrestling? Forget it. Every time I got on the mat, Clarisse would pulverize me.**

Ares smiled. "Got that right punk!"

"Lord Ares, I think you shouldn't say that." Said Percy.

**"There's more where that came from, punk," she'd mumble in my ear.**

**The only thing I really excelled at was canoeing, and that wasn't the kind of heroic skill people expected to see from the kid who had beaten the Minotaur.**

"Ego," Thalia said.

"He was right though," Travis said. "When I watched him tear it up at canoeing, I thought 'what kind of lame god excels in canoeing'." Travis looked up at Poseidon. "No offense."

"None taken," Poseidon smiled back.

**I knew the senior campers and counselors were watching me, trying to decide who my dad was, but they weren't having an easy time of it. I wasn't as strong as the Ares kids, **

"Damn right you aren't," Ares shouted.

"But now he is," Annabeth whispered to the demigods.

**or as good at archery as the Apollo kids.**

**I didn't have Hephaestus's skill with metalwork **

"Too bad," Leo sighed. "He would have been a cool cabin mate."

**or—gods forbid— Dionysus's way with vine plants. **

"Well the feelings mutual," Dionysus grumbled.

**Luke told me I might be a child of Hermes, a kind of jack-of-all-trades, master of none. But I got the feeling he was just trying to make me feel better. He really didn't know what to make of me either.**

"I still can't believe you were watching me like Grover watches enchiladas." Percy saud with with a jiking smile.

**Despite all that, I liked camp. I got used to the morning fog over the beach, the smell of hot strawberry fields in the afternoon, even the weird noises of monsters in the woods at night. I would eat dinner with cabin eleven, scrape part of my meal into the fire, and try to feel some connection to my real dad. **

Poseidon smiled. _It will come Percy._

**Nothing came. Just that warm feeling I'd always had, like the memory of his smile. I tried not to think too much about my mom, but I kept wondering: if gods and monsters were real, if all this magical stuff was possible, surely there was some way to save her, to bring her back...**

Sally smiled sadly.

"Your son is crazy brother," Zeus concluded. "Going into another's domain wouldn't be wise on his part."

"Make him come," Hades smiled.

Hera smacked her brother. "Stop being creepy, you're scaring the children."

Hades swore under his breath.

**I started to understand Luke's bitterness and how he seemed to resent his father, Hermes. So okay, maybe gods had important things to do. But couldn't they call once in a while, or thunder, or something? **

"The gods shifted uncomfortably as the demigod children stared on a little disappointed.

**Dionysus could make Diet Coke appear out of thin air. Why couldn't my dad, whoever he was, make a phone appear?**

"I'm sorry," Poseidon said quietly.

"It's okay dad. I forgive you." Poseidon smiled at both b-percy and Percy.

**Thursday afternoon, three days after I'd arrived at Camp Half-Blood, I had my first sword-fighting lesson. Everybody from cabin eleven gathered in the big circular arena, where Luke would be our instructor.**

"Of course," Conner whispered. Truth be told, he was a little jealous of Luke. His father was clearly his favorite, and he was almost good at everything.

Hermes frowned a little at his son's bitterness towards his other son, but didn't say a word.

**We started with basic stabbing and slashing, using some straw-stuffed dummies in Greek armor. I guess I did okay. At least, I understood what I was supposed to do and my reflexes were good.**

"Great, he's reflex's are great," Annabeth corrected.

**The problem was, I couldn't find a blade that felt right in my hands. Either they were too heavy, or too light, or too long.**

"Is that possible?" Jason asked. He never really had that problem, or anyone for that matter, usually they just had a preference to a certain weapon and usually found one rather quickly. "What does he use if he doesn't like anyone?"

"It'll come up. I'm pretty sure," Said Percy, who had a devilish look in his eyes.

**Luke tried his best to fix me up, but he agreed that none of the practice blades seemed to work for me.**

**We moved on to dueling in pairs. Luke announced he would be my partner, since this was my first time.**

"Of course he would," Nico muttered. _Probably wanted to fight him personally to see what he's like._

**"Good luck," one of the campers told me. "Luke's the best swordsman in the last three hundred years."**

Hermes smirked and the other gods rolled their eyes.

"Not anymore," Nico smiled sticking up for his cousin. "Percy's got that title now!"

It was Poseidon's turn to smile as the gods rolled their eyes and Hermes to frown a little.

**"Maybe he'll go easy on me," I said.**

**The camper snorted.**

"I think that was us," Travis told Conner.

"Probably," He answered.

**Luke showed me thrusts and parries and shield blocks the hard way. With every swipe, I got a little more battered and bruised. **

_You could at least go easy on him Luke._ Annabeth thought angrily.

**"Keep your guard up, Percy," he'd say, then whap me in the ribs with the flat of his blade. "No, not that far up!" **_**Whap! **_**"Lunge!" **_**Whap! **_**"Now, back!" **_**Whap!**_

"Love the sound effects," Leo smiled. "It's like I'm there."

**By the time he called a break, I was soaked in sweat. Everybody swarmed the drinks cooler. Luke poured ice water on his head, which looked like such a good idea, I did the same.**

Poseidon smiled. _That's it Percy, go to the water._

**Instantly, I felt better. Strength surged back into my arms. The sword didn't feel so awkward.**

"That's cool," Jason pointed out.

"It is," Thalia agreed. "I think only Poseidon's children can get that energy boost, because of the water."

Nico nodded. "Yeah I think you're right, I don't get any stronger when I'm in the underworld, what about you?"

Thalia didn't say a word, knowing her fear of heights, so instead, Jason answered.

"Um…not really sure about a boost when I'm in the air."

**"Okay, everybody circle up!" Luke ordered. "If Percy doesn't mind, I want to give you a little demo."**

"Of course he chose Percy," Grover grumbled.

**Great, I thought. Let's all watch Percy get pounded.**

"I love that show," Thalia laughed.

Percy stuck his tongue out at his favorite cousin.

**The Hermes guys gathered around. They were suppressing smiles. I figured they'd been in my shoes before and couldn't wait to see how Luke used me for a punching bag. **

Everyone turned to the Stolls who smiled sheepishly.

**He told everybody he was going to demonstrate a disarming technique: how to twist the enemy's blade with the flat of your own sword so that he had no choice but to drop his weapon.**

"Nice technique," Ares said slightly interested.

**"This is difficult," he stressed. "I've had it used against me. No laughing at Percy, now. Most swordsmen have to work years to master this technique."**

"Is it really that hard?" Jason asked.

"Yeah."

**He demonstrated the move on me in slow motion. Sure enough, the sword clattered out of my hand.**

**"Now in real time," he said, after I'd retrieved my weapon. "We keep sparring until one of us pulls it off. Ready, Percy?"**

"Doubt it," Katie said.

**I nodded, and Luke came after me. Somehow, I kept him from getting a shot at the hilt of my sword. My senses opened up. I saw his attacks coming. I countered. I stepped forward and tried a thrust of my own. Luke deflected it easily, but I saw a change in his face. His eyes narrowed, and he started to press me with more force.**

_A change in his face? _Annabeth thought. _Luke knew._

**The sword grew heavy in my hand. The balance wasn't right.**

"Excuses," Hermes said rooting for his son.

Poseidon glared. "Yes, because picking on someone who just lost their mother and is having his first sword practice against the best swordsmen in the last three hundred years, is fair!"

Hermes quickly back down, but the other gods stared at Poseidon a little worried.

**I knew it was only a matter of seconds before Luke took me down, so I figured, What the heck?**

**I tried the disarming maneuver.**

Thalia and Jason leaned a little forward, but curious.

**My blade hit the base of Luke's and I twisted, putting my whole weight into a downward thrust.**

_**Clang.**_

**Luke's sword rattled against the stones.**

"Hey Perce, how did you do that?" Asked Nico, but when he turned to were Percy should be, he wasn't there.

"Where did Percy go?"

"More importantly where did Annabeth go?" Asked Athena who was looking quite scary.

Out of nowhere, Annabeth and Percy appeared behind Nico and went "BOO!" Nico jumped about twenty feet in the air while everyone else were cracking up. They thought Annabeth and Percy had been pulling a prank but Thalia and Nico knew what really happened.

**The tip of my blade was an inch from his undefended chest.**

_End it now. _Thalia thought. _Could have saved a lot of lives._

**The other campers were silent.**

"It was intense," Conner said.

**I lowered my sword. "Um, sorry."**

"Wow," Leo said simply. "Who apologizes for that!"

"He's nervous," Hestia smiled. "He thought he did something wrong."

"You did well," Poseidon smiled at both Percys, but B-Percy was still staring at Artemis. "What is it Percy?"

"Her daddy, her," B-Percy pointed at Artemis who looked a little confused.

"Me? Artemis looked around but stared at B-Percy. "What about me?"

B-Percy didn't answer, instead, threw out his arms and started to bounce up and down in anticipation for Artemis to grab him.

"I think he wants you," Aphrodite smiled as Artemis walked towards B-Percy. "Look at that, a male actually has power over you Artemis."

Artemis growled before lifting B-Percy up. "What is it Perseus?"

B-Percy smiled shyly before whispering one word that sent the room into laughter.

"Potty," He whispered.

Apollo fell out of his throne laughing. "Oh that's brilliant. Sis on poop duty."

Artemis blushed for the first time in over a thousand years. "Um…," She turned to Sally and began to carry Percy towards her.

"No. No. No. No. No," Percy chanted. He gripped Artemis's neck in a tight hold that nearly stopped Artemis's breathing. "You!"

"This is why I don't do kids," Artemis sighed. "Alright, you win, let's go."

The two of them flashed out leaving the room in laughter.

"Gods Percy, you crack me up even as a baby." Thalia and Nico said.

**For a moment, Luke was too stunned to speak.**

**"Sorry?" His scarred face broke into a grin. "By the gods, Percy, why are you sorry? Show me that again!"**

**I didn't want to. The short burst of manic energy had completely abandoned me. But Luke insisted.**

"Yet again, of course," Nico whispered.

**This time, there was no contest. The moment our swords connected, Luke hit my hilt and sent my weapon skidding across the floor.**

"I guess the water boost doesn't last long," Piper noticed.

"It does, over time," Percy answered.

**After a long pause, somebody in the audience said, "Beginner's luck?"**

"That was me," Conner smiled.

**Luke wiped the sweat off his brow. He appraised at me with an entirely new interest. "Maybe," he said. "But I wonder what Percy could do with a balanced sword..."**

"A lot of damage," Nico remembered the massacre in the underworld after his bathe in the Styx.

"Take what he did to the Minoutar and then multiply it by infiniti."

**Friday afternoon, I was sitting with Grover at the lake, resting from a near-death experience on the climbing wall.**

"Been there too," Piper shuddered.

**Grover had scampered to the top like a mountain goat, but the lava had almost gotten me. My shirt had smoking holes in it. The hairs had been singed off my forearms.**

"That wasn't fun at all." Percy grumbled.

**We sat on the pier, watching the naiads do underwater basket-weaving, until I got up the nerve to ask Grover how his conversation had gone with Mr. D.**

**His face turned a sickly shade of yellow.**

**"Fine," he said. "Just great."**

"Liar," Hermes sang, back to his normal cheerful self after his little dust up with Poseidon.

**"So your career's still on track?"**

**He glanced at me nervously. "Chiron t-told you I want a searcher's license?"**

**"Well... no." I had no idea what a searcher's license was, but it didn't seem like the right time to ask.**

"Good point," Katie agreed.

**"He just said you had big plans, you know ... and that you needed credit for completing a keeper's assignment. So did you get it?"**

**Grover looked down at the naiads. "Mr. D suspended judgment. **

Mostly everyone glared at Dionysus.

"Why didn't you give it to him?" Athena asked.

"How am I supposed to know, this is in the future," Dionysus pointed out. "But if I'd have to guess, he probably failed."

"No shit," Athena mumbled.

"MOM," Annabeth yelled a little flabbergasted.

"Sorry," Athena said not sounding sorry at all, kind of like Annabeth.

_Gods she has a mouth. _Poseidon thought. _Wow, that sounded dirty!_ _Vocabulary, yes, that's better!_

**He said I hadn't failed or succeeded with you yet, so our fates were still tied together. If you got a quest and I went along to protect you, and we both came back alive, then maybe he'd consider the job complete."**

"That's pretty much impossible for them," Demeter pointed out. "You're setting a nearly impossible task."

"Well the average demigod almost dies about twenty times a day so it actually wouldn't be that hard."

**My spirits lifted. "Well, that's not so bad, right?"**

_**"Blaa-ha-ha!**_ **He might as well have transferred me to stable-cleaning duty. The chances of you getting a quest... and even if you did, why would you want **_**me **_**along?"**

"You're my best friend Grover," Percy said.

**"Of course I'd want you along!"**

"Thanks Perce," Grover smiled at his friend's outburst.

_Good friend. _Athena thought. She turned to her daughter. _I guess she could do worse._

**Grover stared glumly into the water. "Basket-weaving ... Must be nice to have a useful skill."**

"Confidence Grover," Piper smiled at him. "You need confidence."

**I tried to reassure him that he had lots of talents, but that just made him look more miserable. We talked about canoeing and swordplay for a while, then debated the pros and cons of the different gods. Finally, I asked him about the four empty cabins.**

**"Number eight, the silver one, belongs to Artemis," he said. "She vowed to be a maiden forever. So of course, no kids. The cabin is, you know, honorary. If she didn't have one, she'd be mad."**

"Yes I would," Artemis's voice broke the throne room. She came back carrying a smiling Percy who was clinging to her neck. "And right now, there isn't a word that could describe how mad I am."

"That bad?" Sally's heart went out to Artemis. She knew how…surprising…Percy could be when he's being changed.

"Well, take out the fact that he started to pee once his pants were off, he decided that there wasn't enough poop to go around, so he ordered a fresh batch."

Mostly everybody was gagging, while Aphrodite turned green. Even the Stolls were having a tough time laughing.

"Luckily, I had Hecate perform a spell to put him to sleep, while I changed him," Artemis sighed. She looked at Percy who was still smiling. "And now he won't leave my sight."

"Oh Seaweed Brain," Annabeth muttered. She mentally laughed at baby Percy's antics, but would defiantly joke around with Percy later that night.

"On with the story please Chiron, before he goes for round two," Artemis said sitting back on her throne with Percy.

**"Yeah, okay. But the other three, the ones at the end. Are those the Big Three?"**

All three brothers smiled being mentioned as the Big Three.

**Grover tensed. We were getting close to a touchy subject. "No. One of them, number two, is Hera's," he said. "That's another honorary thing. She's the goddess of marriage, so of course she wouldn't go around having affairs with mortals.**

"Thank you satyr," Hera nodded at Grover who smiled back shyly. She turned to Zeus. "You could learn a thing or two."

**That's her husband's job. **

Zeus glared at Grover who shrunk in his seat.

"I like this one," Hera smiled at Grover yet again.

"I don't," Zeus mumbled.

**When we say the Big Three, we mean the three powerful brothers, the sons of Kronos."**

**"Zeus, Poseidon, Hades."**

**"Right. You know. After the great battle with the Titans, they took over the world from their dad and drew lots to decide who got what."**

"Not fair," Apollo whined, but quickly closed his mouth at the stare from his two uncles and father.

**"Zeus got the sky," I remembered. "Poseidon the sea, Hades the Underworld."**

**"Uh-huh."**

**"But Hades doesn't have a cabin here."**

"Yes, I don't," Hades eyed his two brothers.

"But, I could have sworn I saw−" Leo started but closed his mouth from the stare from all the demigods.

"Don't ruin it," Nico whispered.

**"No. He doesn't have a throne on Olympus, either. He sort of does his own thing down in the Underworld. If he did have a cabin here ..." Grover shuddered. "Well, it wouldn't be pleasant. Let's leave it at that."**

"HEY," Hades and Nico yelled.

**"But Zeus and Poseidon—they both had, like, a bazillion kids in the myths. Why are their cabins empty?"**

**Grover shifted his hooves uncomfortably.**

**"About sixty years ago, after World War II, the Big Three agreed they wouldn't sire any more heroes.**

"Way to keep your word," Hades said coldly. He eyed the four 'fugitives'. "four of them in the same room."

**Their children were just too powerful. **

"Bet your ass we are!" Nico shouted getting up.

"Sit down," Thalia shouted. "But he is right!"

"Of course he is. What's better than water kicking air kicking death kicking ass powers?" said Percy.

**They were affecting the course of human events too much, causing too much carnage. World War II, you know, that was basically a fight between the sons of Zeus and Poseidon on one side, and the sons of Hades on the other. The winning side, Zeus and Poseidon, made Hades swear an oath with them: no more affairs with mortal women. They all swore on the River Styx."**

"And look how that turned out," Hera said.

**Thunder boomed.**

**I said, "That's the most serious oath you can make."**

"Observant," Athena noticed.

**Grover nodded.**

**"And the brothers kept their word—no kids?"**

**Grover's face darkened. "Seventeen years ago, Zeus fell off the wagon.**

Everyone eyed Zeus who shifted in his throne. Hera had a hard glare set in his direction.

**There was this TV starlet with a big fluffy eighties hairdo—he just couldn't help himself.**

The Stolls laughed but quickly stopped after sensing the tension in the room.

**When their child was born, a little girl named Thalia ... **

"Little girl?" Thalia repeated eyeing Grover.

He shrugged a little scared. "You were at one point."

**well, the River Styx is serious about promises. Zeus himself got off easy because he's immortal, but he brought a terrible fate on his daughter."**

Zeus looked at his daughter wondering what fate the satyr was talking about.

Thalia, a little tense, was wrapped in a tight hug from Annabeth for support.

**"But that isn't fair.' It wasn't the little girl's fault."**

Thalia smiled at Percy, but was a little annoyed at the 'little girl' comment.

**Grover hesitated. "Percy, children of the Big Three have powers greater than other half-bloods.**

The four demigods smiled smugly.

**They have a strong aura, a scent that attracts monsters. When Hades found out about the girl, he wasn't too happy about Zeus breaking his oath. **

Zeus glared at Hades.

"Oh, how the tables have turned," Poseidon said eyeing both his brothers. He turned to Zeus. "How does it feel brother, having your own child being hunted by your own family?"

Zeus looked at Poseidon a little shocked, but knew he was right.

**Hades let the worst monsters out of Tartarus to torment Thalia. A satyr was assigned to be her keeper when she was twelve, but there was nothing he could do.**

Zeus glared at Hades. "You're lucky she's here and safe Hades, or your son would feel the same wrath."

Nico, a little scared for his life, was quickly backed up from his father.

"Hold your tongue Zeus; you know damn well what you did!" Hades shouted.

Zeus remained silent as everyone wondered what they were talking about.

**He tried to escort her here with a couple of other half-bloods she'd befriended. They almost made it. They got all the way to the top of that hill."** **He pointed across the valley, to the pine tree where I'd fought the minotaur. "All three Kindly Ones were after them, along with a horde of hellhounds. They were about to be overrun when Thalia told her satyr to take the other two half-bloods to safety while she held off the monsters. She was wounded and tired, and she didn't want to live like a hunted animal. The satyr didn't want to leave her, but he couldn't change her mind, and he had to protect the others. So Thalia made her final stand alone, at the top of that hill. **

Zeus shoulders collapsed, but remained strong, not wanting to cry in front of everyone, although his facial reaction was saying otherwise.

Hera looked over at her husband, and felt sympathy towards him even though he cheated.

"You're a brave maiden," Artemis smiled at Thalia.

"Thank you, my Lady," Thalia smiled back, but with sad eyes.

Grover looked at Thalia and the two exchanged a smile.

**As she died,** **Zeus took pity on her. He turned her into that pine tree. Her spirit still helps protect the borders of the valley. That's why the hill is called Half-Blood Hill."**

"So that's what you were talking about," Jason said to his sister. "I'm sorry Thalia, I wish I was there."

Thalia smiled at her brother. "It's okay; I'm good, and back."

"How daughter?" Zeus asked her. "How are you back?"

Thalia contemplated on answering, but couldn't ruin the story, but decided to score some bonus points for Percy.

"I can't tell, but I'll give you a clue. You could thank Percy, among others," Thalia said cryptically, while smiling at Grover and Annabeth.

Zeus smiled, and looked over at Percy who was lightly snoring next to Annabeth.

"Thank you child," Zeus said.

Annabeth smiled. _Seaweed Brain._

**I stared at the pine in the distance.**

**The story made me feel hollow, and guilty too. A girl my age had sacrificed herself to save her friends. She had faced a whole army of monsters. Next to that, my victory over the Minotaur didn't seem like much.**

"Not true Percy," Thalia smiled at Percy. "Your fight was just as heroic, if not more."

"Did I just here Thalia give me a compliment?" Percy asked but he was still sleeping.

"NO." Thalia heard

**I wondered, if I'd acted differently, could I have saved my mother?**

Sally smiled. "You did amazing Percy, never doubt that!"

"I know mom."

**"Grover," I said, "Have heroes really gone on quests to the Underworld?"**

**"Sometimes," he said. "Orpheus. Hercules. Houdini."**

**"And have they ever returned somebody from the dead?"**

Sally smiled, but knew this was impossible, especially against Hades.

**"No. Never. Orpheus came close... . Percy, you're not seriously thinking—"**

**"No," I lied.**

"Are you really thinking about doing that?" Asked Leo

No one answered.

**"I was just wondering. So ... a satyr is always assigned to guard a demigod?"**

**Grover studied me warily. I hadn't persuaded him that I'd really dropped the Underworld idea. "Not always. We go undercover to a lot of schools. We try to sniff out the half-bloods who have the makings of great heroes. If we find one with a very strong aura, like a child of the Big Three, we alert Chiron. He tries to keep an eye on them, since they could cause really huge problems."**

**"And you found me. Chiron said you thought I might be something special."**

"Ego alert!" Yelled Thalia. When she said that a wave about five feet high hit her.

"PERCY!" Percy was snickering in his sleep.

"How does he do that?" Asked Nico. Annabeth just shrugged her shoulders.

**Grover looked as if I'd just led him into a trap. "I didn't...Oh, listen, don't think like that. If you **_**were**_—**you know—you'd never **_**ever **_**be allowed a quest, and I'd never get my license. You're probably a child of Hermes. Or maybe even one of the minor gods, like Nemesis, the god of revenge. Don't worry, okay?"**

"She's a goddess," Athena pointed out

Grover blushed.

**I got the idea he was reassuring himself more than me.**

**That night after dinner, there was a lot more excitement than usual.**

**At last, it was time for capture the flag.**

**When the plates were cleared away, the conch horn sounded and we all stood at our tables.**

**Campers yelled and cheered as Annabeth and two of her siblings ran into the pavilion carrying a silk banner. It was about ten feet long, glistening gray, with a painting of a barn owl above an olive tree. From the opposite side of the pavilion, Clarisse and her buddies ran in with another banner, of identical size, but gaudy red, painted with a bloody spear and a boar's head.**

**I turned to Luke and yelled over the noise, "Those are the flags?"**

**"Yeah."**

**"Ares and Athena always lead the teams?"**

**"Not always," he said. "But often."**

**"So, if another cabin captures one, what do you do— repaint the flag?"**

"Hmm, that'd be cool," Conner thought. " Hey Chiron, could−"

"No!"

**He grinned. "You'll see. First we have to get one."**

**"Whose side are we on?"**

**He gave me a sly look, as if he knew something I didn't. The scar on his face made him look almost evil in the torchlight. **

The demigods frowned.

**"We've made a temporary alliance with Athena. Tonight, we get the flag from Ares. And **_**you **_**are going to help."**

"And he did," Annabeth whispered.

**The teams were announced. Athena had made an alliance with Apollo and Hermes, the two biggest cabins.**

"Yeah," Hermes and Apollo cheered and clapped hands.

**Apparently, privileges had been traded—shower times, chore schedules, the best slots for activities—in order to win support.**

**Ares had allied themselves with everybody else: Dionysus, Demeter, Aphrodite, and Hephaestus. From what I'd seen, Dionysus's kids were actually good athletes, but there were only two of them. **

Dionysus smiled at the mention of his two sons.

**Demeter's kids had the edge with nature skills and outdoor stuff but they weren't very aggressive. **

Demeter frowned but Katie smiled at her.

"He's right mom," She defended her cousin.

**Aphrodite's sons and daughters I wasn't too worried about. They mostly sat out every activity and checked their reflections in the lake and did their hair and gossiped.**

Aphrodite smiled. "I'm so proud."

Piper sighed. "But they don't fight mom!"

"I know, they accessorize," She beamed.

**Hephaestus's kids weren't pretty, and there were only four of them, but they were big and burly from working in the metal shop all day. They might be a problem.**

Hephaestus smiled but Leo frowned.

"Only four?" Leo wondered.

"Over the years they started to fly in," Annabeth explained.

**That, of course, left Ares's cabin: a dozen of the biggest, ugliest, meanest kids on Long Island, or anywhere else on the planet.**

Ares glared at Percy, but was met with a fierce glare from Annabeth.

**Chiron hammered his hoof on the marble.**

**"Heroes!" he announced. "You know the rules. The creek is the boundary line. The entire forest is fair game. All magic items are allowed. The banner must be prominently displayed, and have no more than two guards. Prisoners may be disarmed, but may not be bound or gagged. No killing or maiming is allowed. I will serve as referee and battlefield medic. Arm yourselves!"**

**He spread his hands, and the tables were suddenly covered with equipment: helmets, bronze swords, spears, oxhide shields coated in metal.**

**"Whoa," I said. "We're really supposed to use these?"**

"No, it's just for show," Thalia said sarcastically.

**Luke looked at me as if I were crazy. "Unless you want to get skewered by your friends in cabin five. Here—Chiron thought these would fit. You'll be on border patrol."**

**My shield was the size of an NBA backboard, with a big caduceus in the middle. It weighed about a million pounds. I could have snowboarded on it fine, but I hoped nobody seriously expected me to run fast. My helmet, like all the helmets on Athena's side, had a blue horsehair plume on top. Ares and their allies had red plumes.**

**Annabeth yelled, "Blue team, forward!"**

Athena smiled at her daughter.

**We cheered and shook our swords and followed her down the path to the south woods. The red team yelled taunts at us as they headed off toward the north.**

**I managed to catch up with Annabeth without tripping over my equipment. "Hey."**

**She kept marching.**

"Ooh, the first cold shoulder," Nico smirked.

Annabeth glared at him. Percy threw a wave at him.

**"So what's the plan?" I asked. "Got any magic items you can loan me?"**

**Her hand drifted toward her pocket, as if she were afraid I'd stolen something.**

"Ah, thought he was our brother huh?" Conner smirked.

"Well yeah," Annabeth said. "I wasn't so sure so."

"You're forgiven." Percy said in his sleep.

**"Just watch Clarisse's spear," she said. "You don't want that thing touching you. Otherwise, don't worry. We'll take the banner from Ares. Has Luke given you your job?"**

**"Border patrol, whatever that means."**

**"It's easy. Stand by the creek, keep the reds away. Leave the rest to me. Athena always has a plan."**

Athena smiled yet again at her daughter.

"That's like your motto," Travis sighed. "It gets so annoying."

**She pushed ahead, leaving me in the dust.**

Athena smiled for what seemed like the tenth time at her daughter, but felt a little bad for the boy.

"Rejected" said Nico. He got splashed again. **(Baby Percy is asleep)**

**"Okay," I mumbled. "Glad you wanted me on your team."**

"You hurt his feelings," Aphrodite sniffled.

Annabeth blushed but Percy and Annabeth turned invisible again.

_Good one daughter of Athena _Poseidon thought. Poseidon waved his hand then Annabeth and Percy appeared again. Except this time they were making out. Luckily Athena wasn't in the room.

**It was a warm, sticky night. The woods were dark, with fireflies popping in and out of view**_**. **_**Annabeth stationed me next to a little creek that gurgled over some rocks, then she and the rest of the team scattered into the trees.**

**Standing there alone, with my big blue-feathered helmet and my huge shield, I felt like an idiot. **

**The bronze sword, like all the swords I'd tried so far, seemed balanced wrong. The leather grip pulled on my hand like a bowling ball.**

**There was no way anybody would actually attack me, would they? I mean, Olympus had to have liability issues, right?**

"Do we?" Apollo asked, but was ignored.

**Far away, the conch horn blew. I heard whoops and yells in the woods, the clanking of metal, kids fighting. A blue-plumed ally from Apollo raced past me like a deer, leaped through the creek, and disappeared into enemy territory.**

**Great, I thought. I'll miss all the fun, as usual.**

**Then I heard a sound that sent a chill up my spine, a low canine growl, somewhere close by.**

Annabeth frowned. _So it was watching the whole time._

**I raised my shield instinctively; I had the feeling some thing was stalking me.**

Sally and Poseidon paled.

**Then the growling stopped. I felt the presence retreating.**

**On the other side of the creek, the underbrush exploded. Five Ares warriors came yelling and screaming out of the dark.**

Ares smirked. "Pay back!"

**"Cream the punk!" Clarisse screamed.**

**Her ugly pig eyes glared through the slits of her helmet. She brandished a five-foot-long spear, its barbed metal tip flickering with red light. Her siblings had only the standard-issue bronze swords—not that that made me feel any better.**

**They charged across the stream. There was no help in sight. I could run. Or I could defend myself against half the Ares cabin.**

**I managed to sidestep the first kid's swing, but these guys were not as stupid the Minotaur. They surrounded me, and Clarisse thrust at me with her spear. My shield deflected the point, but I felt a painful tingling all over my body. My hair stood on end. My shield arm went numb, and the air burned.**

Ares eyes widened. "That sounds awesome."

**Electricity. Her stupid spear was electric. I fell back.**

Poseidon wanted to yell or help his son, but he couldn't, he had to sit back and watch.

**Another Ares guy slammed me in the chest with the butt of his sword and I hit the dirt.**

Annabeth paled. She didn't get there quick enough. _No wonder he was mad. Sorry Seaweed Brain. _Percy looked at her as if to say it didn't matter.

**They could've kicked me into jelly, but they were too busy laughing.**

**"Give him a haircut," Clarisse said. "Grab his hair."**

"NO WAY," Annabeth yelled. She immediately shut her mouth while blushing.

"Um…I like his hair long," Annabeth admitted.

"He does have nice hair," Artemis agreed. She had been busy playing with his hair while everyone talked.

"Just read," Athena sighed. Percy was laughing to himself the entire time.

**I managed to get to my feet. I raised my sword, but Clarisse slammed it aside with her spear as sparks flew. Now both my arms felt numb.**

**"Oh, wow," Clarisse said. "I'm scared of this guy. Really scared."**

"You should be," Nico said coldly.

**"The flag is that way," I told her. I wanted to sound angry, but I was afraid it didn't come out that way.**

"He gave away are position," The Stolls argued.

**"Yeah," one of her siblings said. "But see, we don't care about the flag. We care about a guy who made our cabin look stupid."**

**"You do that without my help," I told them. It probably wasn't the smartest thing to say.**

Everyone laughed.

"This guys a riot," Leo laughed but was silenced by Ares.

**Two of them came at me. I backed up toward the creek, tried to raise my shield, but Clarisse was too fast. Her spear stuck me straight in the ribs. If I hadn't been wearing an armored breastplate, I would've been shish-kebabbed. As it was, the electric point just about shocked my teeth out of my mouth. One of her cabinmates slashed his sword across my arm, leaving a good-size cut.**

**Seeing my own blood made me dizzy—warm and cold at the same time.**

**"No maiming," I managed to say.**

**"Oops," the guy said. "Guess I lost my dessert privilege."**

"That's your punishment," Demeter asked out raged. "The poor boy could bleed to death and you'll just take away someone's dessert."

Jason frowned. _They need to be more disciplined with their punishments._

"We've fixed that Lady Demeter," Chiron spoke, a little startled by the revelation that someone had done that to Percy.

**He pushed me into the creek and I landed with a splash.**

"Thank gods," Poseidon sighed.

"Cue ass kicking Percy." Nico said.

**They all laughed. I figured as soon as they were through being amused, I would die. But then something happened. The water seemed to wake up my senses, as if I'd just had a bag of my mom's double-espresso jelly beans.**

"Go Percy," Nico and the Stolls cheered.

**Clarisse and her cabinmates came into the creek to get me, but I stood to meet them. I knew what to do. I swung the flat of my sword against the first guy's head and knocked his helmet clean off. I hit him so hard I could see his eyes vibrating as he crumpled into the water.**

"Wow," Jason awed. "The water does him wonders."

Thalia nodded. "Just wait till he could actually use a sword without it, kind of scary."

**Ugly Number Two and Ugly Number Three came at me. I slammed one in the face with my shield and used my sword to shear off the other guy's horsehair plume. Both of them backed up quick. Ugly Number Four didn't look really anxious to attack, but Clarisse kept coming, the point of her spear crackling with energy. As soon as she thrust, I caught the shaft between the edge of my shield and my sword, and I snapped it like a twig.**

Ares had smoke coming from his ears as everyone laughed.

"That's awesome," Leo said. He hadn't been there when it happened. No one had.

Annabeth smiled. She remembered watching him take care of the Ares cabin and thought it was amazing. She smiled at Percy who was once again lightly snoring with his head in her lap.

**"Ah!" she screamed. "You idiot! You corpse-breath worm!"**

"That'd be me," Nico said without realizing what he actually said. "Wait…that didn't come out right…"

"Idiot," Thalia and Katie whispered to each other at their cousin's antics.

**She probably would've said worse, but I smacked her between the eyes with my sword-butt and sent her stumbling backward out of the creek.**

_Don't get on Percy's bad side. _Jason thought. _Check._

**Then I heard yelling, elated screams, and I saw Luke racing toward the boundary line with the red team's banner lifted high. He was flanked by a couple of Hermes guys covering his retreat, and a few Apollos behind them, fighting off the Hephaestus kids. The Ares folks got up, and Clarisse muttered a dazed curse.**

**"A trick!" she shouted. "It was a trick."**

Athena beamed at her daughter. _Genius Annabeth. Pure genius._

**They staggered after Luke, but it was too late. Everybody converged on the creek as Luke ran across into friendly territory. Our side exploded into cheers. The red banner shimmered and turned to silver. The boar and spear were replaced with a huge caduceus, the symbol of cabin eleven. Everybody on the blue team picked up Luke and started carrying him around on their shoulders. **

_Wow._ Nico thought. _Percy takes care of the best warriors, and Mr. Cool takes the credit._

**Chiron cantered out from the woods and blew the conch horn.**

**The game was over. We'd won.**

**I was about to join the celebration when Annabeth's voice, right next to me in the creek, said, "Not bad, hero."**

**I looked, but she wasn't there.**

Everyone wondered where she was, but Athena caught on.

_The hat. _She thought. _I must have given it to her in the past already._

**"Where the heck did you learn to fight like that?" she asked. The air shimmered, and she materialized, holding a Yankees baseball cap as if she'd just taken it off her head.**

"What we could do with that hat for an hour would make us legendary," Travis said with glittering eyes.

"The pranks, thefts, gods, just imagine," Conner smiled.

**I felt myself getting angry. I wasn't even fazed by the fact that she'd just been invisible. "You set me up," I said. "You put me here because you knew Clarisse would come after me, while you sent Luke around the flank. You had it all figured out."**

"Not bad," Athena said. "Caught on quick."

**Annabeth shrugged. "I told you. Athena always, always has a plan."**

"Way to be sympathetic Annabeth," Aphrodite shook her head in disappointment.

Annabeth didn't answer back. If she had known what they were doing the whole time, she would have jumped in.

**"A plan to get me pulverized."**

**"I came as fast as I could. I was about to jump in, but ..." She shrugged. "You didn't need help."**

**Then she noticed my wounded arm. "How did you do that?"**

**"Sword cut," I said. "What do you think?"**

"Smart mouth," Annabeth smiled.

"But yet she loves to connect with it." Thalia whispered to Nico. They were cracking up.

**"No. It **_**was **_**a sword cut. Look at it."**

**The blood was gone. Where the huge cut had been, there was a long white scratch, and even that was fading. As I watched, it turned into a small scar, and disappeared.**

"It heals him too?" Piper asked.

"Yeah, it's really cool actually," Grover answered.

Sally smiled at Poseidon. _Thank you._

_I'm always watching him. _He answered back truthfully.

**"I—I don't get it," I said.**

**Annabeth was thinking hard.**

**I could almost see the gears turning. She looked down at my feet, then at Clarisse's broken spear, and said, "Step out of the water, Percy."**

**"What—"**

**"Just do it."**

"Already bossing him around," Thalia laughed. "Nice"

**I came out of the creek and immediately felt bone tired. My arms started to go numb again. My adrenaline rush left me. I almost fell over, but Annabeth steadied me.**

Aphrodite smiled at Annabeth knowingly.

**"Oh, Styx," she cursed. "This is **_**not **_**good. I didn't want ... I assumed it would be Zeus..."**

"What's that supposed to mean?" Zeus asked his granddaughter.

Annabeth didn't shy away. Her mother was there, and surprisingly, Poseidon seemed to be on good terms with her, so she had a little back up.

"No disrespect Lord Zeus, but you had sired Thalia at the time, so it only seemed fair to assume that Percy would be yours," Annabeth answered.

Athena nodded at her daughter as did Zeus.

"Good point."

**Before I could ask what she meant, I heard that canine growl again, but much closer than before. A howl ripped through the forest.**

**The campers' cheering died instantly. Chiron shouted something in Ancient Greek, which I would realize, only later, I had understood perfectly: **_**"Stand ready! My bow!"**_

**Annabeth drew her sword.**

**There on the rocks just above us was a black hound the size of a rhino, with lava-red eyes and fangs like daggers.**

"Hellhound," Poseidon snapped at Hades. "Honestly, what's your problem?"

Nico wanted to defend his dad, but he didn't know better. Right now, he was on Percy's side.

**It was looking straight at me.**

**Nobody moved except Annabeth, who yelled, "Percy, run!"**

"I should have just pushed him into the water and then he would have killed it in three seconds."

**She tried to step in front of me, but the hound was too fast. It leaped over her—an enormous shadow with teeth—and just as it hit me, as I stumbled backward and felt its razor-sharp claws ripping through my armor, there was a cascade of thwacking sounds, like forty pieces of paper being ripped one after the other. From the hounds neck sprouted a cluster of arrows. The monster fell dead at my feet.**

"Whoever it was, thank you," Poseidon breathed a sigh of relief.

**By some miracle, I was still alive. I didn't want to look underneath the ruins of my shredded armor. My chest felt warm and wet, and I knew I was badly cut. Another second, and the monster would've turned me into a hundred pounds of delicatessen meat.**

**Chiron trotted up next to us, a bow in his hand, his face grim.**

"Thank you Chiron," Poseidon and Sally said.

Chiron nodded.

_**"Di immortales!"**_ **Annabeth said. "That's a hellhound from the Fields of Punishment. They don't ... they're not supposed to ..."**

**"Someone summoned it," Chiron said. "Someone inside the camp."**

The god's eyes widened, as did Jason, Leo, and Piper.

"Who would do such a thing," Demeter asked.

_Luke_ thought Percy, Annabeth, Thalia, Connor, Travis, Katie, and Nico.

**Luke came over, the banner in his hand forgotten, his moment of glory gone.**

_Good._ Conner thought. _Damn, I'm a really angry person. _

"Yo Travis," Conner whispered to his brother. "I think I have to take some anger management classes."

Travis frowned. "Luke?" Conner nodded at the simple word. "Then I need them too."

**Clarisse yelled, "It's all Percy's fault! Percy summoned it!"**

"Seriously?" Thalia asked.

**"Be quiet, child," Chiron told her.**

**We watched the body of the hellhound melt into shadow, soaking into the ground until it disappeared.**

**"You're wounded," Annabeth told me. "Quick, Percy, get in the water."**

**"I'm okay."**

**"No, you're not," she said. "Chiron, watch this."**

"Again being bossy," Nico laughed. "You guys haven't changed a bit."

**I was too tired to argue. I stepped back into the creek, the whole camp gathering around me.**

**Instantly, I felt better. I could feel the cuts on my chest closing up. Some of the campers gasped.**

**"Look, I—I don't know why," I said, trying to apologize. "I'm sorry..."**

"Stop being sorry," Nico laughed. "Gods he's so weird."

"He is also right here and can toss into the Atlantic with just a flick of his hand." said Percy.

**But they weren't watching my wounds heal. They were staring at something above my head.**

"He's being claimed," Athena deducted. She looked over at the toddler who had somehow managed to bribe Artemis into giving him a miniature bow and was shooting arrows at Apollo. "What are you doing?"

Everyone turned to see Percy shoot another arrow at Apollo.

Artemis grinned. "Well seeing as he wasn't very good at archery, I decided to start him off young, and what better way than too practice then to shoot arrows at Apollo."

"I could think of about a dozen," Apollo whined. "Ouch, that's my toe Perce."

"Yay, Arty," Percy cheered happily looking up at his mentor.

"Nice job," Artemis laughed along with Percy at Apollo's discomfort.

_Wow. _Thalia thought. _The hunters are never going to believe this one back home._

"I already know how bad Apollo is. Sweet." Percy mumbled.

**"Percy," Annabeth said, pointing. "Um ..."**

**By the time I looked up, the sign was already fading, but I could still make out the hologram of green light, spinning and gleaming. A three-tipped spear: a trident.**

**"Your father," Annabeth murmured. "This is **_**really **_**not good."**

Poseidon smirked at Annabeth. "You're right, it's amazing!"

"Not what she meant fish face," Athena sighed.

"Well for her it became amazing." Nico and Thalia whispered.

**"It is determined," Chiron announced.**

**All around me, campers started kneeling, even the Ares cabin, though they didn't look happy about it.**

**"My father?" I asked, completely bewildered.**

**"Poseidon," said Chiron. "Earthshaker, Stormbringer, Father of Horses. Hail, Perseus Jackson, Son of the Sea God."**

"And on that happy note bedtime." said Chiron.


	12. bedtime

Chiron showed the demigods and Sally their sleeping quarters. Everybody got their own room. The rooms changed to how you wanted them. After Chiron left Annabeth snuck down to Percy's room. Annabeth fell into Percy's arms. Annabeth didn't want to relive the quests or the war. Annabeth felt safe in Percy's strong arms around her. They looked at each and then kissed. They kissed until they needed to breathe. Annabeth let a few tears escape. Percy whispered that everything was going to be okay. Annabeth fell asleep in his arms. It was one of peacefulness nights Annabeth had in months. When Annabeth woke up she was cuddled up next to Percy. Annabeth was about to get up when she heard Thalia outside the door.

"I'm telling you Nico, Annabeth is probably in Percy's room."

"I still think she's probably outside in the gardens or something."

"Well why don't we check." Annabeth ducked into the closet just as Thalia opened the door.

"Rise and shine lovebirds," she said. She pulled the covers off of Percy and was disappointed when she didn't see Annabeth. But she did get splashed by water. Annabeth was silently shaking with laughter and almost fell out of the closet.

"Get out of my room." Percy looked angry.

"Fine."

"You can come out now Annabeth." Annabeth came out and fell right into his arms.

"I love you." She whispered.

"Love you too Wise Girl." Annabeth snuck back to her room. Five minutes later Percy and Annabeth were walking to breakfast together.

"Where were you this morning?" Said Thalia

"Taking a walk."

"Oh."

"So who will read next?"

"I will."


	13. a quest and some nicknames

"**I Am Offered a Quest," **Aphrodite began, but was quickly interrupted by Ares.

"About time," He groaned. "Besides that lame capture the flag, this book sucks."

"You suck," Aphrodite smacked him hard.

"Shhh. You're going to wake up B-Percy." said Artemis.

"Gods woman, that hurts," Ares shouted. He turned to Artemis and eyed the small bundle on her lap. "You like pain punk; I'll give you some real soon."

"Silence Ares," Hera snapped. "Leave the boy alone."

"But…mommy," Ares stuttered. "He started it."

Hera shouted yet again, while the demigods watched in amusement.

"Mommy. Mommy. Mommy," The Stolls mimicked.

"Hehehe." Baby Percy woke up from the laughter at Ares for getting hit.

The demigods laughed, while Annabeth snuggled into Percy knowing what was coming up next.

A quick plan formed in her head, and eyed the twins. _So he likes pain!_

A quick jab and smack in the head later, Percy was now laughing at the twins and looking at Annabeth with bright sea green eyes.

"You. I want…her," Percy looked up at Artemis. "Please."

The deeper the chapters went, the more Percy relaxed around everyone and opened up. He was close to full sentences half way through the book.

"Um…" Artemis looked over at Athena who with a fling of her hand, sent her message. "Sure, go on."

She dropped Percy, and quickly he crawled past his mother with a childish smile and straight into the arms of Annabeth yet again.

"Hey Seaweed Brain, again," Annabeth smiled at him. She brought him close and comfortable and low enough for him whispered, "I missed you."

Percy smiled at how even as a baby Annabeth fell for him.

Aphrodite, Piper, and Thalia, watching the exchange, smiled.

"She even likes him as a baby," Aphrodite smiled.

"I know, it's amazing," Piper agreed.

"Is it me, or Percy had an egg shaped head?" Thalia finished.

"I'm not an egg Thalia."

Both girls stared at her weirdly.

"It's just me."

**The next morning, Chiron moved me to cabin three.**

**I didn't have to share with anybody. I had plenty of room for all my stuff: the Minotaur's horn, one set of spare clothes, and a toiletry bag. I got to sit at my own dinner table, pick all my own activities, call "lights out" whenever I felt like it, and not listen to anybody else.**

"It sounds awesome, but I wouldn't be able to do it," Travis said.

"It sucks," Nico frowned. "Big three kids have it worst in that department."

"Unless you have a sibling," Jason smiled at Thalia, even though she doesn't stay in the Zeus cabin when she comes to camp.

Nico kept quiet thinking about Bianca, and surprisingly, he thought about his recently discovery about his half sister at the roman camp, Hazel.

**And I was absolutely miserable.**

Sally felt terrible. _This is exactly why I didn't want him to go there. He's just a boy._

**Just when I'd started to feel accepted, to feel I had a home in cabin eleven and I might be a normal kid—or as normal as you can be when you're a half-blood—I'd been separated out as if I had some rare disease.**

Everyone looked at Percy and their hearts went out to him.

"Don't worry Perseus," Hestia smiled at him. "You have a family here and now."

"I know." Baby Percy fell asleep in Annabeth's lap.

**Nobody mentioned the hellhound, but I got the feeling they were all talking about it behind my back.**

"We were," Conner admitted.

Katie was about to smack him, but he held his hands out in protection.

"WAIT, please, gods wait, I'm not Travis," Conner stuttered. "We didn't make fun of him; we were talking about what kind of cool powers he would have."

Katie blushed at the Travis comment but turned to the other brother who nodded in agreement.

**The attack had scared everybody. It sent two messages: one; that I was the son of the Sea God; and two, monsters would stop at nothing to kill me. They could even invade a camp that had always been considered safe.**

"How, is what I would like to know," Athena turned to Chiron but he didn't budge.

**The other campers steered clear of me as much as possible. Cabin eleven was too nervous to have sword class with me after what I'd done to the Ares folks in the woods, so my lessons with Luke became one-on-one. **

"Wimps," Ares stared at The Stolls.

"In our defense…"Travis thought for a minute. "Okay, we don't have a good reason, but I dare you to fight Percy one on one."

"I'd do it," Thalia, Ares, Annabeth, and Jason said. The four turned to each other and laughed.

"I know his weak spots," Annabeth explained.

"I just like fighting him," Thalia laughed. She turned to her brother. "What about you?"

"Never saw him fight, so what's there to be scared of?"

"A lot," Nico interrupted.

"But you know I can still beat your butts. Except maybe Annabeth's." Percy said while laughing.

**He pushed me harder than ever, and wasn't afraid to bruise me up in the process.**

Poseidon eyed Hermes but didn't say anything.

**"You're going to need all the training you can get," he promised, as we were working with swords and flaming torches. "Now let's try that viper-beheading strike again. Fifty more repetitions."**

"Fifty? But he just started," Leo pointed out.

"Doesn't matter," Athena said. "He's a kid from the Big Three, he needs to learn quickly."

**Annabeth still taught me Greek in the mornings, but she seemed distracted. Every time I said something, she scowled at me, as if I'd just poked her between the eyes.**

Athena smiled at her daughter as the rest laughed.

"Annabeth, that isn't nice," Katie laughed.

Annabeth blushed and looked at Percy. "Sorry Seaweed Brain."

"It's okay." Before she could look away he kissed her infront of everyone without even knowing it.

She blushed crimson as everyone laughed.

"Kids a heart breaker," Aphrodite smiled before turning back to the book.

**After lessons, she would walk away muttering to herself: "Quest ... Poseidon? ... Dirty rotten ... Got to make a plan …"**

"Dirty and rotten," Athena repeated. "Very good daughter."

**Even Clarisse kept her distance, though her venomous looks made it clear she wanted to kill me for breaking her magic spear. I wished she would just yell or punch me or something. I'd rather get into fights every day than be ignored.**

**I knew somebody at camp resented me, because one night I came into my cabin and found a mortal newspaper dropped inside the doorway, a copy of the **_**New York Daily News, **_**opened to the Metro page. The article took me almost an hour to read, because the angrier I got, the more the words floated around on the page.**

_Luke. _Most demigods thought.

_**BOY AND MOTHER STILL MISSING AFTER**_

_**FREAK CAR ACCIDENT**_

_**BY EILEEN SMYTHE**_

_**Sally Jackson and son Percy are still missing one week after their mysterious disappearance. The family's badly burned '78 Camaro was discovered last Saturday on a north Long Island road with the roof ripped off and the front axle broken.**_

"Good," Travis said.

_**The car had flipped and skidded for several hundred feet before exploding.**_

Most glared at Zeus.

_**Mother and son had gone for a weekend vacation to Montauk, but left hastily, under mysterious circumstances. Small traces of blood were found in the car and near the scene of the wreck, but there were no other signs of the missing Jacksons. **_

"Crazy mortal," Conner laughed. "You walked right past us."

_**Residents in the rural area reported seeing nothing unusual around the time of the accident.**_

_**Ms. Jackson's husband, Gabe Ugliano, claims that his stepson, Percy Jackson, is a troubled child who has been kicked out of numerous boarding schools and has expressed violent tendencies in the past.**_

"Load of shit," Poseidon yelled. "Disgusting mortal."

_**Police would not say whether son Percy is a suspect in his mother's disappearance, but they have not ruled out foul play. Below are recent pictures of Sally Jackson and Percy. Police urge anyone with information to call the following toll-free crime-stoppers hotline.**_

"Huh, Percy a criminal, who knew," Travis said. "Maybe there's hope after all."

"NEVER!" Percy and Annabeth yelled. When they realized that they siad the same thing they both blushed crimson red.

**The phone number was circled in black marker.**

_Nice Luke, real nice. _Thalia thought. _Gods what happened to you._

**I wadded up the paper and threw it away, then flopped down in my bunk bed in the middle of my empty cabin.**

**"Lights out," I told myself miserably.**

"Poor boy," Demeter thought. "I'll make you cookies after okay?"

Baby Percy, hearing cookies, woke up and smiled.

"He is exactly like the present Percy. They hear things they want to hear in their sleep." Nico said in astonishment.

"Cookies?'' Percy asked.

"Cwookies?" Baby Percy asked.

**That night, I had my worst dream yet.**

**I was running along the beach in a storm. This time, there was a city behind me. Not New York. The sprawl was different: buildings spread farther apart, palm trees and low hills in the distance.**

**About a hundred yards down the surf, two men were fighting. They looked like TV wrestlers, muscular, with beards and long hair. Both wore flowing Greek tunics, one trimmed in blue, the other in green. They grappled with each other, wrestled, kicked and head-butted, and every time they connected, lightning flashed, the sky grew darker, and the wind rose.**

"Wrestlers," Zeus and Poseidon repeated.

"Who knew?" Apollo looked at them. "I wonder who'd win."

"Me," Both said, and then glared at each other.

**I had to stop them. I didn't know why. But the harder I ran, the more the wind blew me back, until I was running in place, my heels digging uselessly in the sand.**

**Over the roar of the storm, I could hear the blue-robed one yelling at the green-robed one, **_**Give it back! Give it back! **_**Like a kindergartner fighting over a toy.**

Zeus shot Poseidon another glare. "You better not have it."

**The waves got bigger, crashing into the beach, spraying me with salt.**

**I yelled, **_**Stop it! Stop fighting!**_

"The boy's smart," Hera looked at the two of them. "He sees sense, where as you two fight like little kids."

**The ground shook. Laughter came from somewhere under the earth, and a voice so deep and evil it turned my blood to ice**_**.**_

Cue looks at Hades.

_**Come down, little hero, **_**the voice crooned. **_**Come down!**_

Nico looked at his dad wondering what his dad wanted with Percy.

Annabeth and Grover both looked grim.

_He dreamed about Kronos early._ Annabeth thought.

**The sand split beneath me, opening up a crevice straight down to the center of the earth. My feet slipped, and darkness swallowed me.**

**I woke up, sure I was falling.**

**I was still in bed in cabin three. My body told me it was morning, but it was dark outside, and thunder rolled across the hills. A storm was brewing. I hadn't dreamed that.**

**I heard a clopping sound at the door, a hoof knocking on the threshold.**

**"Come in?"**

**Grover trotted inside, looking worried. "Mr. D wants to see you."**

"Ah yes, now I get to smack the boy around," Dionysus smiled.

**"Why?"**

**"He wants to kill... I mean, I'd better let him tell you."**

"Sorry Perce." But Percy didn't hear as he was devouring his second plate of cookies while Annabeth stared in awe at how Baby Percy and Percy were almost done with their third plate. It hadn't even been five minutes. Are they even breathing?

"Geez Perce, wanna ease up on the cookies?"

"What?" said both Percy's at the same time. Everybody cracked up at their expressions. When they realized they were laughing bothe Percy's swallowed at the same time and gave Annabeth a cookie.

"It's like he has clone." said Thalia who was clutching her stomach.

**Nervously, I got dressed and followed, sure that I was in huge trouble.**

**For days, I'd been half expecting a summons to the Big House. Now that I was declared a son of Poseidon, one of the Big Three gods who weren't supposed to have kids, I figured it was a crime for me just to be alive.**

"It is," Zeus said. His two children raised their eyebrow at him. "But I shouldn't talk."

"Yes, you shouldn't," Hades looked at the two.

**The other gods had probably been debating the best way to punish me for existing, and now Mr. D was ready to deliver their verdict.**

"Not going to happen, Percy," Poseidon said to the book.

**Over Long Island Sound, the sky looked like ink soup coming to a boil. A hazy curtain of rain was coming in our direction. I asked Grover if we needed an umbrella.**

**"No," he said. "It never rains here unless we want it to."**

**I pointed at the storm. "What the heck is that, then?"**

"Zeus," Grover whispered.

**He glanced uneasily at the sky. "It'll pass around us. Bad weather always does."**

**I realized he was right. In the week I'd been here, it had never even been overcast. The few rain clouds I'd seen had skirted right around the edges of the valley.**

**But this storm ... this one was huge.**

"With good reason," Zeus said.

**At the volleyball pit, the kids from Apollo's cabin were playing a morning game against the satyrs. Dionysus's twins were walking around in the strawberry fields, making the plants grow. Everybody was going about their normal business, but they looked tense. They kept their eyes on the storm.**

**Grover and I walked up to the front porch of the Big House. Dionysus sat at the pinochle table in his tiger-striped Hawaiian shirt with his Diet Coke, just as he had on my first day. Chiron sat across the table in his fake wheel chair. They were playing against invisible opponents-two sets of cards hovering in the air.**

"Do they still beat me Chiron," Dionysus asked hesitantly. The centaur nodded slowly. "Damn it!"

**"Well, well," Mr. D said without looking up. "Our little celebrity."**

"He pretty much was," Katie agreed.

**I waited.**

**"Come closer," Mr. D said. "And don't expect me to bow to you, mortal, just because old Barnacle-Beard is your father."**

"Real original Dionysus," Poseidon glared.

**A net of lightning flashed across the clouds. Thunder shook the windows of the house.**

**"Blah, blah, blah," Dionysus said.**

**Chiron feigned interest in his pinochle cards. Grover cowered by the railing, his hooves clopping back and forth.**

**"If I had my way," Dionysus said, "I would cause your molecules to erupt in flames. We'd sweep up the ashes and be done with a lot of trouble. But Chiron seems to feel this would be against my mission at this cursed camp: to keep you little brats safe from harm."**

"You're not making any friends with that tone Dionysus," Poseidon spat. "I'm pretty sure I could speak for everyone with a child there, hurt one, and you'll feel the wrath of all of us."

The other gods nodded and Dionysus looked a little pale.

**"Spontaneous combustion **_**is **_**a form of harm, Mr. D," Chiron put in.**

**"Nonsense," Dionysus said. "Boy wouldn't feel a thing. Nevertheless, I've agreed to restrain myself I'm thinking of turning you into a dolphin instead, sending you back to your father."**

"We'll see what'll happen if you do."

**"Mr. D—" Chiron warned.**

**"Oh, all right," Dionysus relented. "There's one more option. But it's deadly foolishness." Dionysus rose, and the invisible players' cards dropped to the table. "I'm off to Olympus for the emergency meeting. If the boy is still here when I get back, I'll turn him into an Atlantic bottlenose. Do you understand? And Perseus Jackson, if you're at all smart, you'll see that's a much more sensible choice than what Chiron feels you must do."**

"Really?" Annabeth nearly shouted. "You're lucky to have him!"

Dionysus was about to snap at the ungrateful demigod, but from the stern look from his half sister, he backed down.

_Damn you all. _Dionysus thought.

**Dionysus picked up a playing card, twisted it, and it became a plastic rectangle. A credit card? No. A security pass.**

**He snapped his fingers.**

**The air seemed to fold and bend around him. He became a hologram, then a wind, then he was gone, leaving only the smell of fresh-pressed grapes lingering behind.**

"I miss it," Dionysus sighed.

**Chiron smiled at me, but he looked tired and strained. "Sit, Percy, please. And Grover."**

**We did.**

**Chiron laid his cards on the table, a winning hand he hadn't gotten to use.**

Chiron smiled. "Game goes to me."

Travis snorted. "What's the point of playing if you always win? Mine as well call the game 'Chiron'."

"Or, 'Mr. D Sucks'," Conner laughed.

**"Tell me, Percy," he said. "What did you make of the hellhound?"**

**Just hearing the name made me shudder.**

**Chiron probably wanted me to say, **_**Heck, it was nothing. I eat hellhounds for breakfast.**_

"Sure," Thalia laughed. "Maybe now, but not then."

**But I didn't feel like lying.**

Chiron smiled but Hermes shook his head.

**"It scared me," I said. "If you hadn't shot it, I'd be dead."**

"Thank you again Chiron," Sally smiled at him.

**"You'll meet worse, Percy. Far worse, before you're done."**

**"Done ... with what?"**

**"Your quest, of course. Will you accept it?"**

"A quest? Was there no other way Chiron?" Poseidon asked.

"I'm afraid not."

**I glanced at Grover, who was crossing his fingers.**

"You wanted to go," Leo wondered. He was fifteen and didn't like quests. Percy was twelve, and Grover wanted to go.

"I had to prove myself," Grover said.

Athena smiled, but frowned remembering the ancient law of two companions. She looked over at her daughter who was blowing small farts on Baby Percy's neck and making him laugh. While Percy would spray him with water.

_Please Annabeth, don't go on the quest. _Athena repeated over and over.

**"Um, sir," I said, "you haven't told me what it is yet."**

**Chiron grimaced. "Well, that's the hard part, the details."**

**Thunder rumbled across the valley. The storm clouds had now reached the edge of the beach. As far as I could see, the sky and the sea were boiling together.**

Both brothers eyed each other, as the other gods grimaced. A war between the two of them would be catastrophic.

**"Poseidon and Zeus," I said. "They're fighting over something valuable ... something that was stolen, aren't they?"**

**Chiron and Grover exchanged looks.**

**Chiron sat forward in his wheelchair. "How did you know that?"**

"Many clues Chiron," Athena explained. "The dreams, the weather, and my daughter's insight."

**My face felt hot. I wished I hadn't opened my big mouth. "The weather since Christmas has been weird, like the sea and the sky are fighting. Then I talked to Annabeth, and she'd overheard something about a theft.** **And ... I've also been having these dreams."**

"Wow," Nico said. "Percy and Athena think alike?"

"NO," Athena hurried. "It's common sense."

**"I knew it," Grover said.**

**"Hush, satyr," Chiron ordered.**

"Yes, hush satyr," Travis said in a terrible imitation of Chiron.

**"But it is his quest!" Grover's eyes were bright with excitement. "It must be!"**

**"Only the Oracle can determine." Chiron stroked his bristly beard. "Nevertheless, Percy, you are correct. Your father and Zeus are having their worst quarrel in centuries. They are fighting over something valuable that was stolen. To be precise: a lightning bolt."**

"I knew it," Zeus shouted. "Someone stole it."

"And you blame me," Poseidon finished. "Like usual."

**I laughed nervously. "A **_**what**_**?"**

"Don't laugh, a lightning bolt," Zeus complained.

**"Do not take this lightly," Chiron warned. "I'm not talking about some tinfoil-covered zigzag you'd see in a second-grade play. I'm talking about a two-foot-long cylinder of high-grade celestial bronze, capped on both ends with god-level explosives."**

"That sounds awesome," Leo awed. He looked at Zeus. "Can I see it?"

Zeus, uncomfortable with the situation, shrugged and pulled his master bolt out. "See, not touch."

Leo looked on amazed, as Poseidon and Hades rolled their eyes.

**"Oh."**

**"Zeus's master bolt," Chiron said, getting worked up now. "The symbol of his power, from which all other lightning bolts are patterned. The first weapon made by the Cyclopes for the war against the Titans, the bolt that sheered the top off Mount Etna and hurled Kronos from his throne; the master bolt, which packs enough power to make mortal hydrogen bombs look like firecrackers."**

"Yes, and it's all mine," Zeus smiled.

"Dad, I'm saying this because I love you," Thalia stood up. "You're creepy."

Zeus frowned as everyone laughed.

**"And it's missing?"**

**"Stolen," Chiron said.**

**"By who?"**

"By whom," Athena and Chiron corrected.

Poseidon rolled his eyes. "I think there's a little more important things to discuss then a literary mistake."

Athena rolled her eyes.

**"By **_**whom**_**," Chiron corrected.**

"Once a teacher, always a teacher." said Nico

**Once a teacher, always a teacher.**

"I think like Percy. IT's the end of the world guys peace out." NIco got splashed by two fifty foot waves.

**"By you."**

"HA, I KNEW IT," Zeus shouted.

Zeus was about to blast Poseidon across the room but Aphrodite shrieked.

"ENOGUH," She yelled. "Let me finish.

**My mouth fell open.**

**"At least"—Chiron held up a hand—"that's what Zeus thinks. **

Zeus backed down.

"Would you look at that," Poseidon glared at his brother. "My son doesn't have it. A couple days ago he didn't even know anything about us, and you expect him to walk up to Olympus and steal your master bolt? Honestly brother, it doesn't take Athena to realize how wrong you are."

Zeus stayed silent, while Athena had a mini debate in her head wondering if Poseidon gave her a compliment or made fun of her.

**During the winter solstice, at the last council of the gods, Zeus and Poseidon had an argument. The usual nonsense: 'Mother Rhea always liked you best,' Air disasters are more spectacular than sea disasters,' etcetera. **

"Yes on the first, no on the second," Poseidon threw in, but the gods glared at him. "Sorry."

**Afterward, Zeus realized his master bolt was missing, taken from the throne room under his very nose. He immediately blamed Poseidon. **

"Obviously."

**Now, a god cannot usurp another god's symbol of power directly—that is forbidden by the most ancient of divine laws. But Zeus believes your father convinced a human hero to take it."**

"Yes, because I recently had coffee with my niece last week," Poseidon said sarcastically. "Next we'll plan a heist on the master volt."

Zeus grumbled, while Thalia snickered at her uncle's antics. _Just like Percy._

**"But I didn't—"**

**"Patience and listen, child," Chiron said. "Zeus has good reason to be suspicious. The forges of the Cyclopes are under the ocean, which gives Poseidon some influence over the makers of his brother's lightning. Zeus believes Poseidon has taken the master bolt, and is now secretly having the Cyclopes build an arsenal of illegal copies, which might be used to topple Zeus from his throne.**

"Wow," Poseidon said simply. "I already had a chance remember?"

Zeus didn't say anything.

**The only thing Zeus wasn't sure about was which hero Poseidon used to steal the bolt. Now Poseidon has openly claimed you as his son. You were in New York over the winter holidays. You could easily have snuck into Olympus. Zeus believes he has found his thief."**

"No comment," Poseidon said.

**"But I've never even been to Olympus! Zeus is crazy!"**

"I really like this boy," Demeter smiled.

Zeus glared.

"Yes, even if he is illegal, the boy speaks the truth," Hades smiled. Percy returned the smile glad to know that Hades likes him.

**Chiron and Grover glanced nervously at the sky. The clouds didn't seem to be parting around us, as Grover had promised. They were rolling straight over our valley, sealing us in like a coffin lid.**

**"Er, Percy ...?" Grover said. "We don't use the **_**c**_**-word to describe the Lord of the Sky."**

"Smart satyr," Zeus nodded at Grover.

**"Perhaps **_**paranoid," **_**Chiron suggested. "Then again, Poseidon has tried to unseat Zeus before. I believe that was question thirty-eight on your final exam..." He looked at me as if he actually expected me to remember question thirty-eight.**

"Really Chiron?" Katie asked. "That's kind of hard."

**How could anyone accuse me of stealing a god's weapon? I couldn't even steal a slice of pizza from Gabe's poker party without getting busted. **

"I had high hopes for this one," Hermes sulked.

"Don't worry Perce, we'll help you out," The Stolls chimed in. Percy and Annabeth looked at each other and then rolled their eyes at the exact same time.

**Chiron was waiting for an answer.**

**"Something about a golden net?" I guessed. "Poseidon and Hera and a few other gods ... they, like, trapped Zeus and wouldn't let him out until he promised to be a better ruler, right?"**

"I knew he would remember," Chiron smiled. "Your son's special Mrs. Jackson."

"Thank you."

Zeus, on the other hand, glared at his wife and brother. "Not a nice time."

"Oh be quiet, you were a terrible ruler, you needed it," Hera said.

**"Correct," Chiron said. "And Zeus has never trusted Poseidon since. Of course, Poseidon denies stealing the master bolt. **

"Because I wouldn't," Poseidon said.

**He took great offense at the accusation. The two have been arguing back and forth for months, threatening war. And now, you've come along—the proverbial last straw."**

**"But I'm just a kid!"**

**"Percy," Grover cut in, "if you were Zeus, and you already thought your brother was plotting to overthrow you, then your brother suddenly admitted he had broken the sacred oath he took after World War II, that he's fathered a new mortal hero who might be used as a weapon against you... Wouldn't that put a twist in your toga?"**

"All good points," Annabeth said to Grover. "Except the twist in the toga part. That's just weird."

**"But I didn't do anything. Poseidon—my dad—he didn't really have this master bolt stolen, did he?"**

"I highly doubt it," Poseidon said.

**Chiron sighed. "Most thinking observers would agree that thievery is not Poseidon's style. But the Sea God is too proud to try convincing Zeus of that. Zeus has demanded that Poseidon return the bolt by the summer solstice. That's June twenty-first, ten days from now. Poseidon wants an apology for being called a thief by the same date. I hoped that diplomacy might prevail, that Hera or Demeter or Hestia would make the two brothers see sense. **

The three sisters smiled at each other then eyed the two brothers.

**But your arrival has inflamed Zeus's temper. Now neither god will back down. Unless someone intervenes, unless the master bolt is found and returned to Zeus before the solstice, there will be war. And do you know what a full-fledged war would look like, Percy?"**

"Awesome," Ares eyes burned with fury and passion.

**"Bad?" I guessed.**

"Catastrophic, disastrous, doomsday, pick your poison," Athena said.

**"Imagine the world in chaos. Nature at war with itself. Olympians forced to choose sides between Zeus and Poseidon. Destruction. Carnage. Millions dead. Western civilization turned into a battleground so big it will make the Trojan War look like a water-balloon fight."**

The gods eyed each other and then the two brothers.

"You see what this could do to our family," Hera yelled at the two. "Sharpen up, the both of you, because you will end up killing millions."

**"Bad," I repeated.**

"Yes Seaweed Brain," Annabeth looked down at him. "Very bad."

"Bad," Baby Percy said with a serious face which made Annabeth smile back at him.

"I know it was bad. I was in shock."

**"And you, Percy Jackson, would be the first to feel Zeus's wrath."**

"Well that sucks," Leo said. "Stuck between two sides in a war and you're the target." He turned to Piper and Leo. "And I thought we had it bad."

The two nodded, but Grover spoke up.

"This is nothing," Grover whispered to them. "There's worse."

**It started to rain. Volleyball players stopped their game and stared in stunned silence at the sky.**

_**I **_**had brought this storm to Half-Blood Hill. Zeus was punishing the whole camp because of me. I was furious.**

Annabeth smiled. "Always trying to be the hero."

**"So I have to find the stupid bolt," I said. "And return it to Zeus."**

"Stupid, my bolt is not stupid," Zeus yelled at Percy with a fierce gaze.

"Meanie!" Baby Percy shouted while Percy and Annabeth rolled around the floor laughing.

Zeus stared wide eyed at the stubborn child. He turned to Aphrodite. "Just read before I kill someone."

**"What better peace offering," Chiron said, "than to have the son of Poseidon return Zeus's property?"**

**"If Poseidon doesn't have it, where is the thing?"**

Zeus and Poseidon came to deep stare and both eyes widened. They turned to their other brother.

"You took it," Zeus accused. "You knew it would start a war and you knew I would accuse him."

Hades looked pissed off. 'Right, because I have nothing better to do than piss you two off. Please, I have much better things to do than steal your master bolt. Besides, I have no demigods at my disposal to be accused of the theft."

Zeus eyed Nico. "Did you take it? He is your father."

"What…" Nico stuttered. "I didn't take anything."

"Leave him be," Hades yelled. "He didn't take it so stop accusing people and let the book play out."

Hades shot Nico a surprising wink.

**"I believe I know." Chiron's expression was grim. "Part of a prophecy I had years ago ... well, some of the lines make sense to me, now. But before I can say more, you must officially take up the quest. You must seek the counsel of the Oracle."**

**"Why can't you tell me where the bolt is beforehand?"**

**"Because if I did, you would be too afraid to accept the challenge."**

"Nice point, but I think Percy would have done it either way Chiron," Thalia told the centaur.

**I swallowed. "Good reason."**

**"You agree then?"**

**I looked at Grover, who nodded encouragingly.**

"Nice influence Grover," Poseidon said quietly.

"I'm sorry Lord Poseidon."

"Don't be," Poseidon smiled at him. "You've read Percy's thoughts, he wants Sally back. What could be scary enough for someone to decline, besides the Underworld."

Grover nodded, while Athena look baffled.

"That…makes perfect sense…how?" She stuttered.

"Read on," Poseidon smiled.

**Easy for him. I was the one Zeus wanted to kill.**

Grover blushed.

**"All right," I said. "It's better than being turned into a dolphin."**

"That's a way to look at it," Travis said.

**"Then it's time you consulted the Oracle," Chiron said. "Go upstairs, Percy Jackson, to the attic. When you come back down, assuming you're still sane, we will talk more."**

"Great speech Chiron," Rachel said. "You probably freaked him out more."

**Four flights up, the stairs ended under a green trap door.**

**I pulled the cord. The door swung down, and a wooden ladder clattered into place.**

**The warm air from above smelled like mildew and rotten wood and something else ... a smell I remembered from biology class. Reptiles. The smell of snakes.**

"I hate that smell," Annabeth shuddered.

**I held my breath and climbed.**

**The attic was filled with Greek hero junk: armor stands covered in cobwebs; once-bright shields pitted with rust; old leather steamer trunks plastered with stickers saying ITHAKA, CIRCE'S ISLE, and LAND OF THE AMAZONS. One long table was stacked with glass jars filled with pickled **_**things**_—**severed hairy claws, huge yellow eyes, various other parts of monsters. A dusty mounted trophy on the wall looked like a giant snake's head, but with horns and a full set of shark's teeth. The plaque read, HYDRA HEAD #1, WOODSTOCK, N.Y., 1969.**

"That's a lot of junk," Leo pointed out.

"I bet we'd make a killing in ebay with that stuff," Conner whispered to Travis.

"We'll hit the attic once we get back," Travis answered.

**By the window, sitting on a wooden tripod stool, was the most gruesome memento of all: a mummy.**

"My oracle," Apollo smiled.

Hades looked around casually.

Piper turned to the other demigods. "So before Rachael was there, it was a mummy?"

"Yup," Katie answered. "Creepy thing."

**Not the wrapped-in-cloth kind, but a human female body shriveled to a husk. She wore a tie-dyed sundress, lots of beaded necklaces, and a headband over long black hair. The skin of her face was thin and leathery over her skull, and her eyes were glassy white slits, as if the real eyes had been replaced by marbles; she'd been dead a long, long time.**

_70 or so years. _Hades thought. _Give or take._

**Looking at her sent chills up my back. And that was before she sat up on her stool and opened her mouth. A green mist poured from the mummy's mouth, coiling over the floor in thick tendrils, hissing like twenty thousand snakes. I stumbled over myself trying to get to the trap door, but it slammed shut.**

"Creepy," Jason said. 'Though I rather that then Octavian."

"Who's Octavian?" Piper asked.

Jason's head started to pound with confused memories. "I…I'm not sure, the name just came so easily."

**Inside my head, I heard a voice, slithering into one ear and coiling around my brain: **_**I am the spirit of Delphi, speaker of the prophecies of Phoebus Apollo, slayer of the mighty Python. Approach, seeker, and ask.**_

"Did you really need to add the Python part?" Artemis asked frustrated with her brother's lame antics.

"No, but it sounded so cool," He answered with a bright smile.

**I wanted to say, **_**No thanks, wrong door, just looking for the bathroom. **_**But I forced myself to take a deep breath.**

"Only Percy could joke at a time like this," Nico laughed.

The Stolls and Leo were both balling in laughter.

"Again Percy could have you brought all the way to the Atlantic with a flick of his hand." Percy said

**The mummy wasn't alive. She was some kind of gruesome receptacle for something else, the power that was now swirling around me in the green mist. But its presence didn't feel evil, like my demonic math teacher Mrs. Dodds or the Minotaur. It felt more like the Three Fates I'd seen knitting the yarn outside the highway fruit stand: ancient, powerful, and definitely **_**not **_**human. But not particularly interested in killing me, either.**

"Very observant," Athena said.

**I got up the courage to ask, "What is my destiny?"**

"Sounds like a genie kind of question," Conner laughed.

**The mist swirled more thickly, collecting right in front of me and around the table with the pickled monster-part jars. Suddenly there were four men sitting around the table, playing cards. Their faces became clearer. It was Smelly Gabe and his buddies.**

"Well that's interesting to see," Hephaestus commented.

**My fists clenched, though I knew this poker party couldn't be real. It was an illusion, made out of mist.**

**Gabe turned toward me and spoke in the rasping voice of the Oracle: **_**You shall go west, and face the god who has turned.**_

"Hades," All the Olympians said together.

"Why me? Just because I live there does not mean it's me," Hades complained.

Nico was a little shocked. He knew his dad wasn't the nicest god out there, but this…

Leo, Piper, and Jason eyed Hades as he received glares from the whole room.

_Not Hades but Ares_ thought Percy and Annabeth.

**His buddy on the right looked up and said in the same voice: **_**You shall find what was stolen, and see it safely returned.**_

"Thank gods," Zeus breathed a sigh in relief. "Problem solved."

"No, weren't you listening, someone turned," Hera shouted at him. "Not everything's about you."

**The guy on the left threw in two poker chips, then said: **_**You shall be betrayed by one who calls you a friend.**_

All eyes fell on Annabeth and Grover.

The older demigods knew it was Luke, and frowned that their friends were being accused mentally.

Leo, Piper, and Jason wondered why Annabeth or Grover would betray him.

**Finally, Eddie, our building superior, delivered the worst line of all: **_**And you shall fail to save what matters most, in the end.**_

Poseidon's eyes fell to Sally who knew exactly what the line meant.

"What matters most…" Athena repeated. "But wouldn't that be…"

Athena caught the sad look on Sally and Poseidon and quickly closed her mouth.

Leo, realizing to what it meant, felt bad for Percy, he too knew what it felt like to lose a mom.

Percy went o his mom and hugged her tightly.

**The figures began to dissolve. At first I was too stunned to say anything, but as the mist retreated, coiling into a huge green serpent and slithering back into the mouth of the mummy, I cried, "Wait! What do you mean? What friend? What will I fail to save?"**

**The tail of the mist snake disappeared into the mummy's mouth. She reclined back against the wall. Her mouth closed tight, as if it hadn't been open in a hundred years. The attic was silent again, abandoned, nothing but a room full of mementos.**

**I got the feeling that I could stand here until I had cob webs, too, and I wouldn't learn anything else.**

"You wouldn't," Apollo said sadly. He felt bad for his cousin.

**My audience with the Oracle was over.**

**"Well?" Chiron asked me.**

**I slumped into a chair at the pinochle table. "She said I would retrieve what was stolen."**

**Grover sat forward, chewing excitedly on the remains of a Diet Coke can. "That's great!"**

"Oh Grover," Thalia shook her head.

"Sorry," Grover blushed. "I was excited.

**"What did the Oracle say **_**exactly?" **_**Chiron pressed. "This is important."**

Chiron frowned. _Very important Percy, very important._

**My ears were still tingling from the reptilian voice. "She ... she said I would go west and face a god who had turned. I would retrieve what was stolen and see it safely returned."**

**"I knew it," Grover said.**

**Chiron didn't look satisfied. "Anything else?"**

**I didn't want to tell him.**

"Tell him Percy, please," Sally begged.

Chiron looked at her sympathetically knowing what was about to come.

**What friend would betray me? I didn't have that many.**

"Not very sure of himself," Piper noticed.

"At all," Annabeth smiled. "But he got better at it."

"Yeah, and now he has a ton of friends," Nico added.

"Trying to decide if you're in or out of that category." Said Percy. Nico pouted.

"Joking."

**And the last line—I would fail to save what mattered most. What kind of Oracle would send me on a quest and tell me, **_**Oh, by the way, you'll fail**_

"Sarcasm, got to love it," Travis smiled.

**How could I confess that?**

**"No," I said. "That's about it."**

"Liar," Hermes smiled.

**He studied my face. "Very well, Percy. But know this: the Oracle's words often have double meanings. Don't dwell on them too much. The truth is not always clear until events come to pass."**

"And they did," Annabeth whispered to Percy, but Chiron's ears picked it up and he smiled at her.

**I got the feeling he knew I was holding back something bad, and he was trying to make me feel better.**

"I knew," Chiron announced.

**"Okay," I said, anxious to change topics. "So where do I go? Who's this god in the west?"**

**"Ah, think, Percy," Chiron said. "If Zeus and Poseidon weaken each other in a war, who stands to gain?"**

**"Somebody else who wants to take over?" I guessed.**

**"Yes, quite. Someone who harbors a grudge, who has been unhappy with his lot since the world was divided eons ago, whose kingdom would grow powerful with the deaths of millions. Someone who hates his brothers for forcing him into an oath to have no more children, an oath that both of them have now broken."**

Hades glared at Chiron.

"Thanks for the vote Chiron, appreciate it," Hades glared.

**I thought about my dreams, the evil voice that had spoken from under the ground. "Hades."**

**Chiron nodded. "The Lord of the Dead is the only possibility."**

Nico frowned.

**A scrap of aluminum dribbled out of Grover's mouth. "Whoa, wait. Wh-what?"**

Hades smirked. "Do I scare you satyr?"

"Uh…" Grover stuttered.

"He's messing with you Grover," Poseidon backed up his son's friend. "Don't answer that."

**"A Fury came after Percy," Chiron reminded him. "She watched the young man until she was sure of his identity, then tried to kill him. Furies obey only one lord: Hades."**

"Point one, Chiron," Travis said.

**"Yes, but—but Hades hates **_**all **_**heroes," Grover protested. "Especially if he has found out Percy is a son of Poseidon..."**

"Point two, Grover," Conner continued.

**"A hellhound got into the forest," Chiron continued.**

"Oh back to Chiron for point three," Travis countered.

**"Those can only be summoned from the Fields of Punishment, and it had to be summoned by someone within the camp. Hades must have a spy here. He must suspect Poseidon will try to use Percy to clear his name. Hades would very much like to kill this young half-blood before he can take on the quest."**

"Another point to Chiron, and he takes the win," Conner finished.

"Yes, that's all interesting, but someone's a spy if it isn't Percy," Athena said.

"Guess you'll have to wait and read," Annabeth told her mom. "Sorry."

"It's not me though." said Percy.

**"Great," I muttered. "That's two major gods who want to kill me."**

"Oh there'll be more," Thalia said. "A lot more."

"Am I one, please tell me I'm not one," Aphrodite shrieked. "Did he call me ugly, was that it?"

The demigods laughed, but it was Annabeth who spoke up.

"No Lady Aphrodite, you're good."

Aphrodite sighed in relief, and eyed Percy. "Thanks gods, I have so many plans and I'd hate to kill such a cute baby face!"

Baby Percy and Percy blushed crimson red.

**"But a quest to ..." Grover swallowed. "I mean, couldn't the master bolt be in some place like Maine? Maine's very nice this time of year."**

"Maine?" Leo asked.

"Better then the Underworld," Grover protested.

**"Hades sent a minion to steal the master bolt," Chiron insisted. "He hid it in the Underworld, knowing full well that Zeus would blame Poseidon.** **I don't pretend to under stand the Lord of the Dead's motives perfectly, or why he chose this time to start a war, but one thing is certain. Percy must go to the Underworld, find the master bolt, and reveal the truth."**

"So he's going to the Underworld?" Leo asked.

"You'll see."

**A strange fire burned in my stomach. The weirdest thing was: it wasn't fear. It was anticipation. The desire for revenge. Hades had tried to kill me three times so far, with the Fury, the Minotaur, and the hell-hound. It was his fault my mother had disappeared in a flash of light. Now he was trying to frame me and my dad for a theft we hadn't committed.**

**I was ready to take him on.**

"Ha," Hades laughed. "I'm a god, and a big three for that matter. Come down Percy Jackson, and will see who's ready to take on whom."

"Percy's crazy," Jason whispered to the demigods.

"Yeah," They all agreed except Nico.

_Laugh it up dad. _Nico thought. _In a couple books, you'll be on the ground with Percy's blade at your throat._

"I am right here."

**Besides, if my mother was in the Underworld …**

**Whoa, boy, said the small part of my brain that was still sane. You're a kid. Hades is a god.**

"Exactly, you don't stand a chance," Hades laughed.

Poseidon glared while Nico smiled.

"Mwhahaha." Percy lauged evily. Nico burst out laughing because he rembered how kick ass Percy was and how his dad was scared of him.

**Grover was trembling. He'd started eating pinochle cards like potato chips.**

"Is that healthy?" Demeter asked.

"He eats tin cans, I think he's good," Hades shot back.

**The poor guy needed to complete a quest with me so he could get his searcher's license, whatever that was, but how could I ask him to do this quest, especially when the Oracle said I was destined to fail? This was suicide.**

"Wrong choice of words Perce," Grover said. "But I'd still go with you."

**"Look, if we know it's Hades," I told Chiron, "why can't we just tell the other gods? Zeus or Poseidon could go down to the Underworld and bust some heads."**

"Yes, why don't we do that," Zeus grumbled.

**"Suspecting and knowing are not the same," Chiron said. "Besides, even if the other gods suspect Hades—and I imagine Poseidon does—they couldn't retrieve the bolt them selves. Gods cannot cross each other's territories except by invitation. **

"I see it now, 'Hey Hades, can we come over for a tea, stroll around the palace, maybe break your face'," Travis laughed.

**That is another ancient rule. Heroes, on the other hand, have certain privileges. They can go anywhere, challenge anyone, as long as they're bold enough and strong enough to do it.**

"Or crazy enough," Piper threw in.

"We all know Percy is beyond crazy enough." said Annabeth who then got splashed by a really tiny wave.

"How come I get hit with the big one and she gets the small one?" Asked Nico.

"She's my girlfriend."

**No god can be held responsible for a hero's actions. Why do you think the gods always operate through humans?"**

The demigods glared at their parents.

**"You're saying I'm being used."**

Poseidon bowed his head in shame. He knew Percy would see it like that.

"I don't see it that way anymore dad."

**"I'm saying it's no accident Poseidon has claimed you now. It's a very risky gamble, but he's in a desperate situation. He needs you."**

**My dad needs me.**

Sally looked up at Poseidon and smiled.

**Emotions rolled around inside me like bits of glass in a kaleidoscope. I didn't know whether to feel resentful or grateful or happy or angry. Poseidon had ignored me for twelve years. Now suddenly he needed me.**

"Do you all feel like this?" Athena asked.

They all nodded.

**I looked at Chiron. "You've known I was Poseidon's son all along, haven't you?"**

**"I had my suspicions. As I said ... I've spoken to the Oracle, too."**

**I got the feeling there was a lot he wasn't telling me about his prophecy, but I decided I couldn't worry about that right now. After all, I was holding back information too.**

"Touché, "Conner said.

**"So let me get this straight," I said. "I'm supposed go to the Underworld and confront the Lord of the Dead."**

**"Check," Chiron said.**

**"Find the most powerful weapon in the universe."**

**"Check."**

**"And get it back to Olympus before the summer solstice, in ten days."**

**"That's about right."**

"Wow, that's a mouthful," Jason said. For a first quest, or a quest at all, his sounded extremely tough and near impossible.

**I looked at Grover, who gulped down the ace of hearts.**

**"Did I mention that Maine is very nice this time of year?" he asked weakly.**

"Nice one goat-boy," Thalia said to Grover who blushed.

**"You don't have to go," I told him. "I can't ask that of you."**

Everyone smiled at Percy's comment.

**"Oh ..." He shifted his hooves. "No ... it's just that satyrs and underground places ... well..."**

**He took a deep breath, then stood, brushing the shredded cards and aluminum bits off his T-shirt. "You saved my life, Percy. If ... if you're serious about wanting me along, I won't let you down."**

"Brave satyr," Hestia and Hera smiled at him.

Grover blushed. "It's nothing really."

"He's being modest," Annabeth smiled at her friend. "Grover's the bravest satyr out there."

"Correction: Best friend who is the best lord of the wil and best satyr in the universe." said percy and Thalia

**I felt so relieved I wanted to cry,**

"Wimp," Ares snickered.

**though I didn't think that would be very heroic. Grover was the only friend I'd ever had for longer than a few months. I wasn't sure what good a satyr could do against the forces of the dead, but I felt better knowing he'd be with me.**

"We're pretty useless," Grover admitted with a laugh. "But I still tried."

"You weren't useless," Annabeth whispered to him. "Remember Medusa."

**"All the way, G-man." I turned to Chiron. "So where do we go? The Oracle just said to go west."**

**"The entrance to the Underworld is always in the west. It moves from age to age, just like Olympus. Right now, of course, it's in America."**

**"Where?"**

**Chiron looked surprised. "I thought that would be obvious enough. The entrance to the Underworld is in Los Angeles."**

"Los Angeles, cool," Leo smiled.

**"Oh," I said. "Naturally. So we just get on a plane—"**

"NO," Poseidon yelled

"Yes, get on a plane," Zeus encouraged.

**"No!" Grover shrieked. "Percy, what are you thinking? Have you ever been on a plane in your life?"**

**I shook my head, feeling embarrassed.**

"Nothing to be embarrassed about," Hestia smiled. "Your mother was just trying to protect you."

**My mom had never taken me anywhere by plane. She'd always said we didn't have the money. Besides, her parents had died in a plane crash.**

Sally smiled sadly at the thought of her parents.

Zeus, who was being glared at Hera, turned to Sally. "Uh…sorry."

Sally nodded, knowing how hard it was for the king of the gods to apologize to a regular person.

**"Percy, think," Chiron said. "You are the son of the Sea God. Your father's bitterest rival is Zeus, Lord of the Sky. Your mother knew better than to trust you in an airplane. You would be in Zeus's domain. You would never come down again alive."**

**Overhead, lightning crackled. Thunder boomed.**

**"Okay," I said, determined not to look at the storm. "So, I'll travel overland."**

"Yes," Athena answered.

**"That's right," Chiron said. "Two companions may accompany you. Grover is one. The other has already volunteered, if you will accept her help."**

"Her?" Athena repeated. She turned to her daughter who was bright red. "Please tell me it isn't you."

**"Gee," I said, feigning surprise. "Who else would be stupid enough to volunteer for a quest like this?"**

Annabeth's smile disappeared, and she accidently held Baby Percy a little too tight.

"Annabef," Baby Percy said trying to wiggle out of her grasp.

Annabeth's thought's broke. "Oh my gods, Percy, I'm so sorry." She picked him up and saw him holding his right arm as if in pain. "Is it your arm?"

He nodded.

Annabeth quickly pulled up his sleeve and kissed his little arm. "Better?"

Baby Percy smiled, and gave her a tight hug. "Yup."

"Everythings better with you." Percy whispered to Annabeth.

Sally smiled at the interaction with her son and Annabeth. _They are defiantly closer then friends._

**The air shimmered behind Chiron.**

**Annabeth became visible, stuffing her Yankees cap into her back pocket.**

"Why daughter?" Athena said with a worried face. "I know there your friends, but it's dangerous."

"I know mom," She answered. "But at the time, I wanted it badly, and if I didn't go, I would have never made such great friends. Besides, I'm fine."

"Yeah, and Percy and I wouldn't be here without her," Grover added. "She's saved my butt more times than I could count."

Annabeth smiled at Grover.

**"I've been waiting a long time for a quest, seaweed brain," she said. **

"And there goes the nickname," Thalia laughed. "A name that will go down in history."

**"Athena is no fan of Poseidon, but if you're going to save the world, I'm the best person to keep you from messing up."**

Athena smiled at her daughter as all her friends agreed.

**"If you do say so yourself," I said. "I suppose you have a plan, wise girl?"**

"Ah, he's flirting with you, "Aphrodite shrieked. "This is going to be awesome!"

**Her cheeks colored. "Do you want my help or not?"**

"Blushing are we?" The goddess of love asked.

"NO," Annabeth shouted but blushed. Percy bearied his face in her hair.

**The truth was, I did. I needed all the help I could get.**

"Good," Annabeth smiled.

**"A trio," I said. "That'll work."**

Leo threw his arms around Piper and Jason. "That's like us."

**"Excellent," Chiron said. "This afternoon, we can take you as far as the bus terminal in Manhattan. After that, you are on your own."**

**Lightning flashed. Rain poured down on the meadows that were never supposed to have violent weather.**

**"No time to waste," Chiron said. "I think you should all get packing."**


	14. Filler- sorry guys

"Lunch time." Yelled Leo.

Everybody went to the dining room. Annabeth and Percy were sitting so close together Annabeth was practically on his lap. Jason and Piper were holding hands and ate in silence. Leo was talking with Connor while Travis was talking to Katie. Sally was talking with Poseidon and Baby Percy was walking all over the place yelling, "I LIKE ANNABEF!" Aphrodite looked around and saw so many couples she was so energized. Aphrodite felt something nagging her. Somebody was jealous. She wouldn't rest until she found out who.

* * *

Sorry about the filler guys!

Thanx for all the reviews.

I just wanna give a couple of shoutouts:

ShimmeringDaisyFace

To All Directioners because today 11/13/12 One Directions knew aln=bum comes out.

Weird thought:

What if Jason and Percy had the same mother but Poseidon was Percy's father and Zeus was Jason's?


	15. uncle ferdinand and pissing gods off

"**We Visit the Garden Gnome Emporium," **Nico read.

Grover, Percy, and Annabeth shuddered. Nobody really knew the details to their first quest, so this was going to get interesting.

_Please don't freak out mom._ Annabeth thought.

**In a way, it's nice to know there are Greek gods out there, **

"He likes us," Apollo smiled. "Thanks Perce."

**because you have somebody to blame when things go wrong.**

"Well…he liked us," Apollo frowned.

Zeus eyed his nephew who was trying to crawl off Annabeth.

"So you're blaming us Perseus?" Zeus asked with a raised eyebrow.

"I was."

**For instance, when you're walking away from a bus that's just been attacked by monster hags and blown up by lightning, and it's raining on top of everything else, most people might think that's just really bad luck;** **when you're a half-blood, you understand that some divine force really is trying to mess up your day.**

Poseidon and Athena eyed Zeus.

"Not only did you destroy their stuff, it's raining!" Athena said annoyed.

**So there we were, Annabeth and Grover and I, walking through the woods along the New Jersey riverbank, the glow of New York City making the night sky yellow behind us, and the smell of the Hudson reeking in our noses.**

**Grover was shivering and braying, his big goat eyes turned slit-pupiled and full of terror.**

**"Three Kindly Ones. All three at once."**

**I was pretty much in shock myself. The explosion of bus windows still rang in my ears. But Annabeth kept pulling us along, saying: "Come on! The farther away we get, the better."**

"At least you're pulling them through Annabeth," Katie noticed.

"I always pull them along."

"Not always," Percy tried to argue but Annabeth glared at him and he shut up. She laughed and kissed him lightly.

**"All our money was back there," I reminded her. "Our food and clothes. Everything."**

"Stop being pessimistic," Thalia said. "You should be glad you're alive."

"I am,"

**"Well, maybe if you hadn't decided to jump into the fight—"**

"Are you seriously blaming him for helping him out?" Nico asked a little shocked.

Annabeth blushed.

**"What did you want me to do? Let you get killed?"**

"He has a point daughter," Athena said. "As much as I dislike your friendship, he did help you."

"I know that mom," Annabeth sighed. "But they were after him. Insyead of saving his own butt he saved all ours." Annabeth smiled at her brave yet stupid boyfriend.

**"You didn't need to protect me, Percy. I would've been fine."**

"Hate being the damsel in distress Annabeth?" Conner wiggled his eyebrow.

"Yes," She said simply.

**"Sliced like sandwich bread," Grover put in, "but fine."**

"Nice comparison," Leo laughed.

**"Shut up, goat boy," said Annabeth.**

"Gods, again with the goat boy," Grover sighed. "Don't you guys have any other nicknames for me?"

"Would you prefer Fury Ass," Travis offered.

"Would you prefer my hoof up yours?" Grover asked back.

Thalia smiled brightly. "Nice goat boy, that's probably the funniest thing you've ever said!"

**Grover brayed mournfully. "Tin cans ... a perfectly good bag of tin cans."**

"Seriously Grover," Thalia said. "I'd be a little more concerned for the money."

**We sloshed across mushy ground, through nasty twisted trees that smelled like sour laundry.**

**After a few minutes, Annabeth fell into line next to me. "Look, I..." Her voice faltered. "I appreciate your coming back for us, okay? That was really brave."**

"How sweet," Aphrodite squealed. "You guys are so cute."

"They are not!" Athena shouted.

Annabeth hid her blushing in Percy's chest.

**"We're a team, right?"**

**She was silent for a few more steps. "It's just that if you died ... aside from the fact that it would really suck for you, it would mean the quest was over. This may be my only chance to see the real world."**

"Ah, so you're using him," Thalia laughed. "Couldn't really care if he croaked."

"Of course I'd care," Annabeth blushed over the roar of laughter. "It came out wrong." Percy rubbed her arm sympathetically.

**The thunderstorm had finally let up. The city glow faded behind us, leaving us in almost total darkness. I couldn't see anything of Annabeth except a glint of her blond hair.**

**"You haven't left Camp Half-Blood since you were seven?" I asked her.**

**"No ... only short field trips. My dad—"**

**"The history professor."**

**"Yeah. It didn't work out for me living at home. I mean, Camp Half-Blood **_**is **_**my home." She was rushing her words out now, as if she were afraid somebody might try to stop her.**

Athena sent her daughter an encouraging smile.

**"At camp you train and train. And that's all cool and everything, but the real world is where the monsters are. That's where you learn whether you're any good or not."**

"And you're good Annabeth, point proven," Grover said. "So enough with the quests."

"Quests?" Demeter asked, but was ignored as the demigods started a discussion.

"She may be good, but I'm better," Thalia smiled smugly.

"Please pinecone face," Nico laughed. "You run around with a group of killing machines, I travel around and do the same damage on my own."

"That's because you're a depressed little girl," Thalia shot back

"I am not a girl," Nico whined.

"You whine like one," Travis snickered. Nico shot him a dark glare. "Sorry!"

Annabeth sighed. "Both of you suck, you're kids of the big three and I'll take you on!"

"Is that a challenge?" Thalia glared.

"Yeah! Me against you, Nico, Jason, and Percy."

"You really shouldn't have four children of the big three fight you alone."

"Fine. Connor, Travis, Katie, Grover, and I will kick your sorry asses.

"ENOGUH," Zeus shouted. "Kill each other later; I want to go to sleep!"

**If I didn't know better, I could've sworn I heard doubt in her voice.**

"He catches that but not obvious hints," Thalia laughed.

"I'm right here."

**"You're pretty good with that knife," I said.**

"Ah, the compliments, you guys are beautiful," Aphrodite smiled dreamily.

**"You think so?"**

**"Anybody who can piggyback-ride a Fury is okay by me."**

"Hey Chiron," Conner said getting the centaur's attention. "You know what the camp needs?"

Chiron sighed. "What does it need Conner?"

"An amusement park," He smiled. "We could have the Hecate Cabin perform magic shows, Hephaestus cabin build rides and roller coasters, Aphrodite cabin spice the place up and offer make over's−"

"They already to that," Thalia pointed out.

"That's beside the point," Conner continued. "It'd be epic, and as the grand finale, we'll have Annabeth teaching kids how to piggyback-ride a Fury!"

Leo looked a little amused along with Travis, but the rest stared wide eyed.

"I honestly didn't know someone could be that stupid," Thalia shook her head.

"It's a good plan," Travis backed his brother up. He turned to Will. "Then we could have your cabin play that backstreet boys music you sing in the shower."

Will blushed crimson as everyone laughed at him.

"I have no clue what you're talking about," He insisted.

"Riiiight," Conner laughed. "I have a recording outside your cabin listening to you!

**I couldn't really see, but I thought she might've smiled.**

"Your first smile," Thalia laughed.

**"You know," she said, "maybe I should tell you ... Something funny back on the bus ..."**

"OH MY GODS," Aphrodite shouted. "You're you going to declare your feelings for him?"

"WHAT," Annabeth and Percy shouted.

"No, no I wasn't," Annabeth insisted. "I can't say or I'll ruin the story.

**Whatever she wanted to say was interrupted by a shrill **_**toot-toot-toot, **_**like the sound of an owl being tortured.**

Athena eyed Percy.

**"Hey, my reed pipes still work!" Grover cried.**

"Now there's a compliment," Chris laughed.

"I still think the owl would sound better," Clarisse joined in.

"I have such great friends," Grover grumbled.

**"If I could just remember a 'find path' song, we could get out of these woods!"**

**He puffed out a few notes, but the tune still sounded suspiciously like Hilary Duff.**

"Gods Grover," Leo laughed. "Seriously?"

**Instead of finding a path, I immediately slammed into a tree and got a nice-size knot on my head.**

"Was that the song or you just being Percy?" Nico asked. Percy splashed him with a wave.

**Add to the list of superpowers I did **_**not **_**have: infrared vision.**

**After tripping and cursing and generally feeling miserable for another mile or so, I started to see light up ahead: the colors of a neon sign. I could smell food. Fried, greasy, excellent food.**

"That's disgusting, "Artemis and Demeter said.

"You're disgusting," Hades smiled at Demeter evilly.

The room was about to break into laughter, but Demeter turned her head away and the sound of sniffling was heard. The elder gods glared at Hades for making their sister cry and Katie was about to run to her mother until Hades spoke up.

"Uh…I'm…sorry," He stuttered.

Demeter turned around with a wide smirk. "Gods you're so gullible."

Hades glared as everyone laughed at him.

**I realized I hadn't eaten anything unhealthy since I'd arrived at Half-Blood Hill, where we lived on grapes, bread, cheese, and extra-lean-cut nymph-prepared barbecue. This boy needed a double cheeseburger.**

"You know Chiron, we'd make a killing if we opened up a fast food joint," Conner said. "I mean, we could have the Hephaestus Cabin…"

"Oh enough with your plans to help out camp," Katie glared. "First an amusement park, then a fast food joint, what's next? A strip bar?"

The Stolls went wide eyed as most of the other guys did.

"Gods Katie, you're a freaking genius," Travis exclaimed.

Katie blushed at the comment, but then glared with all the girls at the guys. While Annabeth smacked them upside the head.

**We kept walking until I saw a deserted two-lane road through the trees. On the other side was a closed-down gas station, a tattered billboard for a 1990s movie, and one open business, which was the source of the neon light and the good smell.**

**It wasn't a fast-food restaurant like I'd hoped. It was one of those weird roadside curio shops that sell lawn flamingos and wooden Indians and cement grizzly bears and stuff like that. **

"Right, because everyone's been to one of those," Thalia remarked sarcastically.

**The main building was a long, low warehouse, surrounded by acres of statuary. The neon sign above the gate was impossible for me to read, because if there's anything worse for my dyslexia than regular English, it's red cursive neon English.**

**To me, it looked like: **_**ATNYU MES GDERAN GOMEN MEPROUIM.**_

"I hate it when that happens," Travis said.

Katie held a hand to her heart in surprise. "You read?" She asked innocently.

**"What the heck does that say?" I asked.**

**"I don't know," Annabeth said.**

Annabeth frowned not knowing something.

**She loved reading so much; I'd forgotten she was dyslexic, too.**

**Grover translated: "Aunty Em's Garden Gnome Emporium."**

Poseidon scratched his head in confusion. _Where have I heard that before?_

Hades on the other hand, perked up at the mention of the place. _So the boy met Medusa. Hmm, I could buy his statue._

**Flanking the entrance, as advertised, were two cement garden gnomes, ugly bearded little runts, smiling and waving, as if they were about to get their picture taken.**

**I crossed the street, following the smell of the hamburgers.**

**"Hey ..." Grover warned.**

_Should have listened. _Grover thought.

**"The lights are on inside," Annabeth said. "Maybe it's open."**

**"Snack bar," I said wistfully.**

**"Snack bar," she agreed.**

"Wow, you think like Percy," Thalia snickered.

**"Are you two crazy?" Grover said. "This place is weird."**

"Percy yes, me no," Annabeth said.

"Correction both- Crazy in LOVE!" Yelled Aphrodite. Annabeth and Percy blushed madly.

**We ignored him.**

"Percy yes, Annabeth yes," Nico smiled.

"Well would you look at that," Grover said. "Ignore the satyr, and you nearly die."

"DIE," Athena and Poseidon yelled.

Annabeth and Percy glared at Grover before turning to their parents. "What Grover means is, we could have been hurt, not dead."

"Yeah right," Grover whispered. "Since when is being turned into a statue considered hurt?"

**The front lot was a forest of statues: cement animals, cement children, even a cement satyr playing the pipes, which gave Grover the creeps.**

_**"Bla-ha-ha!" **_**he bleated. "Looks like my Uncle Ferdinand!"**

Athena frowned. _Why would someone sculpt a satyr?_

**We stopped at the warehouse door.**

**"Don't knock," Grover pleaded. "I smell monsters."**

**"Your nose is clogged up from the Furies," Annabeth told him.**

"You really should listen to him," Thalia said.

A tense atmosphere covered the throne room. Everyone was on the edge of their seats. Poseidon, Athena, and Sally all had worried looks on their faces. The demigods were looking at Annabeth, Percy, and Grover for some sort of information, but they stayed quiet.

**"All I smell is burgers. Aren't you hungry?"**

**"Meat!" he said scornfully. "I'm a vegetarian."**

"I'd say you're far from a vegetarian," Travis commented. "So far you've eaten tin cans, playing cards, and a hacky sack."

"Yeah, where are the vegetables there," Conner agreed. "Sounds like a garbage diet."

**"You eat cheese enchiladas and aluminum cans," I reminded him.**

**"Those are vegetables. Come on. Let's leave. These statues are ... looking at me."**

_Looking at them…_Poseidon thought. _Could it be…no, impossible._

**Then the door creaked open, and standing in front of us was a tall Middle Eastern woman—at least, I assumed she was Middle Eastern, because she wore a long black gown that covered everything but her hands, and her head was completely veiled. Her eyes glinted behind a curtain of black gauze, but that was about all I could make out. Her coffee-colored hands looked old, but well-manicured and elegant, so I imagined she was a grandmother who had once been a beautiful lady.**

"Beautiful," Annabeth spat. "Yeah right."

"Jealous," Piper smirked. Before Annabeth could answer, Piper looked at Percy. "Hey Percy, do you think Annabeth if beautiful?"

Annabeth blushed as Percy turned to her.

"Um... uh. Yes?"

"I rest my case," Piper laughed.

Athena kept a straight face. She wasn't sure if she should frown or smile.

**Her accent sounded vaguely Middle Eastern, too. She said, "Children, it is too late to be out all alone. Where are your parents?"**

**"We're ... um ..." Annabeth started to say.**

**"We're orphans," I said.**

"Nice cover up," Apollo laughed.

**"Orphans?" the woman said. The word sounded alien in her mouth. "But, my dears! Surely not!"**

**"We got separated from our caravan," I said. "Our circus caravan.**

"That's a terrible lie," Conner said. "But considering its Percy and the pressure, it's acceptable; I'd give it a 6."

"6?" Travis baffled. "Come on bro, pressure, scary lady, hungry, and Percy, those are all factors, I'd easily give it an 8."

"What are you two on about?" Will asked.

"Ranking," Chris mumbled. "They devised a ranking system on pranks, thefts, and lies. Pretty much anything that's no good or idiotic; they rank it out of 10."

"So you do listen," The Stolls smirked at their half brother.

"Ranking huh?" Katie mused. "Well what's the idiotic rank on you two, 10?"

The Stolls stopped laughing, and it was Travis who turned to her.

"Thanks Katie," He told her sincerely.

"Not a compliment," Katie whispered.

**The ringmaster told us to meet him at the gas station if we got lost, but he may have forgotten, or maybe he meant a different gas station. Anyway, we're lost. Is that food I smell?"**

"Wow, Percy's is just as bad as you Chiron," Nico laughed.

"When Percy's hungry, he'll do anything," Sally explained.

She once caught him in the kitchen with a stack of books two feet tall that reached the counter and him on the verge of climbing it.

"It was one time mom!" yelled Percy.

**"Oh, my dears," the woman said. "You must come in, poor children. I am Aunty Em. Go straight through to the back of the warehouse, please. There is a dining area."**

**We thanked her and went inside.**

**Annabeth muttered to me, "Circus caravan?"**

**"Always have a strategy, right?"**

"Wow."

**"Your head is full of kelp."**

"Never truer words spoken," Athena smiled.

**The warehouse was filled with more statues—people in all different poses, wearing all different outfits and with different expressions on their faces. I was thinking you'd have to have a pretty huge garden to fit even one of these statues, because they were all life-size. But mostly, I was thinking about food.**

"Men," Artemis spat.

**Go ahead, call me an idiot **

"You're an idiot," Nearly everyone said.

**for walking into a strange lady's shop like that just because I was hungry,** **but I do impulsive stuff sometimes. **

"Sometimes," Thalia's eyes went wide. "Try always."

"In the dictionary, under impulsive, there's a picture of Percy," Nico laughed.

"And in the dictionaray the definition of corpse-breath and dead meat is a picture of Nico." replied Percy.

**Plus, you've never smelled Aunty Em's burgers. The aroma was like laughing gas in the dentist's chair—it made everything else go away. I barely noticed Grover's nervous whimpers, or the way the statues' eyes seemed to follow me, or the fact that Aunty Em had locked the door behind us.**

"Trust the satyr," Athena shouted. "She's obviously a monster."

**All I cared about was finding the dining area. And sure enough, there it was at the back of the warehouse, a fast-food counter with a grill, a soda fountain, a pretzel heater, and a nacho cheese dispenser. Everything you could want, plus a few steel picnic tables out front.**

**"Please, sit down," Aunty Em said.**

**"Awesome," I said.**

**"Um," Grover said reluctantly, "we don't have any money, ma'am."**

**Before I could jab him in the ribs, Aunty Em said, "No, no, children. No money. This is a special case, yes? It is my treat, for such nice orphans."**

"Really Annabeth," Thalia eyed her. "You're supposed to be the smart one."

**"Thank you, ma'am," Annabeth said.**

**Aunty Em stiffened, as if Annabeth had done some thing wrong, but then the old woman relaxed just as quickly, so I figured it must've been my imagination.**

"I'll show you something wrong," Annabeth glared. Percy wrapped his arms around Annabeth to calm her down.

**"Quite all right, Annabeth," she said. "You have such beautiful gray eyes, child." Only later did I wonder how she knew Annabeth's name, even though we had never introduced ourselves.**

"How does she know her name?" Athena shouted.

**Our hostess disappeared behind the snack counter and started cooking. Before we knew it, she'd brought us plastic trays heaped with double cheeseburgers, vanilla shakes, and XXL servings of French fries.**

Leo sent Jason a pleading thought with his eyes. 'I'm hungry.'

**I was halfway through my burger before I remembered to breathe.**

**Annabeth slurped her shake.**

**Grover picked at the fries, and eyed the tray's waxed paper liner as if he might go for that, but he still looked too nervous to eat.**

**"What's that hissing noise?" he asked.**

**I listened, but didn't hear anything. Annabeth shook her head.**

**"Hissing?" Aunty Em asked. "Perhaps you hear the deep-fryer oil. You have keen ears, Grover."**

"Something's not right," Poseidon announced.

**"I take vitamins. For my ears."**

"Seriously?" Conner asked.

"NO," Grover shouted. "What was I supposed to say, 'I'm a satyr'?"

**"That's admirable," she said. "But please, relax."**

**Aunty Em ate nothing. She hadn't taken off her head dress, even to cook, and now she sat forward and interlaced her fingers and watched us eat. It was a little unsettling, having someone stare at me when I couldn't see her face, but I was feeling satisfied after the burger, and a little sleepy, and I figured the least I could do was try to make small talk with our hostess.**

**"So, you sell gnomes," I said, trying to sound interested.**

**"Oh, yes," Aunty Em said. "And animals. And people. Anything for the garden. Custom orders. Statuary is very popular, you know."**

**"A lot of business on this road?"**

**"Not so much, no. Since the highway was built... most cars, they do not go this way now. I must cherish every customer I get."**

"I bet you do," Annabeth grumbled.

**My neck tingled, as if somebody else was looking at me. I turned, but it was just a statue of a young girl holding an Easter basket. The detail was incredible, much better than you see in most garden statues.**

Poseidon's eyes widened, as did Athena's.

"You're kidding right?" Poseidon asked glumly. "No one's luck is that bad."

"Why, what's wrong?" Hermes asked.

"That's−"

"Don't ruin it," Annabeth, Percy, and Grover shouted.

**But something was wrong with her face. It looked as if she were startled, or even terrified.**

**"Ah," Aunty Em said sadly. "You notice some of my creations do not turn out well. They are marred. They do not sell. The face is the hardest to get right. Always the face."**

**"You make these statues yourself?" I asked.**

**"Oh, yes. Once upon a time, I had two sisters to help me in the business, but they have passed on, and Aunty Em is alone. I have only my statues. This is why I make them, you see. They are my company." The sadness in her voice sounded so deep and so real that I couldn't help feeling sorry for her.**

"Two sisters?" Most gods thought.

Thalia, who tried to think of every monster, realized who it was. "Medusa?"

Annabeth, Percy, and Grover sat quiet.

"It is," Thalia concluded. "Gods why didn't you listen to Grover!"

"Geez Thals, we're fine," Annabeth insisted.

"We're still alive." said Percy.

"But Medusa," Jason said quietly. "Out of all the monsters, his third one is one of the most famous, that sucks."

"No, that's Percy," Grover answered.

**Annabeth had stopped eating. She sat forward and said, "Two sisters?"**

"Yes daughter, get out of there," Athena said quickly. She was terrified for Annabeth; she'd probably go after her first.

**"It's a terrible story," Aunty Em said. "Not one for children, really. You see, Annabeth, a bad woman was jealous of me, long ago, when I was young.**

"JEALOUS!" Athena shouted. "That bitch…"

"ATHENA," Zeus shouted. "Language."

"Too late," Travis smiled. He held up his camcorder. "Got it on film."

Aphrodite ignored the Travis and stared at Athena. "Jealous are we? It makes sense Athena."

"No it doesn't, to imply that I'm jealous, that would mean that I have some sort of feelings for Poseidon, which in fact I don't! The only thing I feel for him is a deep hatred."

Aphrodite frowned and looked at Poseidon who kept a straight face. The Sea god serious look meant a lot more than a frown to Aphrodite. She knew that even if he didn't show it, it hurt a little.

Annabeth stared at her mom a little shocked. Hatred was such a strong word. Describing the Titans or monsters seems fair, but for a rivalry, that was a little cruel.

"Could we just continue, I want to see if my son and his friends are alright," Poseidon looked over at Nico.

**I had a... a boyfriend, you know, and this bad woman was determined to break us apart. She caused a terrible accident. My sisters stayed by me. They shared my bad fortune as long as they could, but eventually they passed on. They faded away. I alone have survived, but at a price. Such a price."**

Athena eyed Poseidon. _It's your fault._

**I wasn't sure what she meant, but I felt bad for her.**

"Only Percy could feel bad for a monster," Thalia shook her head.

**My eyelids kept getting heavier, my full stomach making me sleepy. Poor old lady. Who would want to hurt somebody so nice?**

"Well if it is Medusa, then you should," Jason pointed out.

**"Percy?" Annabeth was shaking me to get my attention. "Maybe we should go. I mean, the ringmaster will be waiting."**

"Finally," Athena sighed in relief.

**She sounded tense. I wasn't sure why. Grover was eating the waxed paper off the tray now, but if Aunty Em found that strange, she didn't say anything.**

**"Such beautiful gray eyes," Aunty Em told Annabeth again. "My, yes, it has been a long time since I've seen gray eyes like those."**

**She reached out as if to stroke Annabeth's cheek, **

"Don't touch her," Athena shouted.

**but Annabeth stood up abruptly.**

**"We really should go."**

**"Yes!" Grover swallowed his waxed paper and stood up. "The ringmaster is waiting! Right!"**

"Stop with the ringmaster," Will said. "Just get the Hades out of there."

**I didn't want to leave. I felt full and content. Aunty Em was so nice. I wanted to stay with her a while.**

"Gods, what's up with you Percy," Piper looked down at him.

Baby Percy looked up. "Um…cookies?"

"Never mind," Piper shook her head.

**"Please, dears," Aunty Em pleaded. "I so rarely get to be with children. Before you go, won't you at least sit for a pose?"**

"Don't listen to her," Demeter shouted.

"Yeah, stay and fight!" Ares argued.

**"A pose?" Annabeth asked warily.**

**"A photograph. I will use it to model a new statue set.** **Children are so popular, you see. Everyone loves children."**

"Not me, definitely not me," Dionysus grumbled.

"You have children," Hestia pointed out. "Surely you love them."

Dionysus grumbled a yes before frowning.

**Annabeth shifted her weight from foot to foot. "I don't think we can, ma'am. Come on, Percy—"**

**"Sure we can," I said.**

"Idiot," Annabeth said.

"Annabef," Baby Percy looked at her a little sad.

"Oh, not you Seaweed Brain," She insisted. "Someone else."

"Hey!" shouted Percy.

Nico leaned in to Thalia. "I swear, the kid only listens to her."

"I know," Thalia agreed. "It's kind of weird."

**I was irritated with Annabeth for being so bossy, **

"She's always bossy, get used to it," Travis said.

"Shut it Travis," She snarled.

"Yes ma'am."

**so rude to an old lady who'd just fed us for free. "It's just a photo, Annabeth. What's the harm?"**

"Actually, it'll turn you into a stone," Clarisse said. "So pretty harmful."

"Wait," Conner paused. "Does it even hurt to turn into stone?"

Hades, perked up. "I don't know half blood do you want to find out?"

Conner shrugged. "Well do you want your helm of darkness back?"

Hades frowned, and watched as the demigod pulled his helm of darkness from behind his back.

"How in the…"

"Son of Hermes my Lord," Conner smiled before tossing it back to Hades.

Hermes beamed at his son as Hades glared.

**"Yes, Annabeth," the woman purred. "No harm."**

**I could tell Annabeth didn't like it, but she allowed Aunty Em to lead us back out the front door, into the garden of statues.**

**Aunty Em directed us to a park bench next to the stone satyr. "Now," she said, "I'll just position you correctly. The young girl in the middle, I think, and the two young gentlemen on either side."**

**"Not much light for a photo," I remarked.**

"Good Percy," Poseidon leaned forward. He eyed Sally who was a little on the nervous side. "He'll be fine."

**"Oh, enough," Aunty Em said. "Enough for us to see each other, yes?"**

**"Where's your camera?" Grover asked.**

**Aunty Em stepped back, as if to admire the shot. "Now, the face is the most difficult. Can you smile for me please, everyone? A large smile?"**

**Grover glanced at the cement satyr next to him, and mumbled, "That sure does look like Uncle Ferdinand."**

"Because it is," Grover said quietly.

**"Grover," Aunty Em chastised, "look this way, dear."**

**She still had no camera in her hands.**

**"Percy—" Annabeth said.**

**Some instinct warned me to listen to Annabeth, but I was fighting the sleepy feeling, the comfortable lull that came from the food and the old lady's voice.**

"He's in a trance."

**"I will just be a moment," Aunty Em said. "You know, I can't see you very well in this cursed veil..."**

**"Percy, something's wrong," Annabeth insisted.**

**"Wrong?" Aunty Em said, reaching up to undo the wrap around her head. "Not at all, dear. I have such noble company tonight. What could be wrong?"**

**"That **_**is **_**Uncle Ferdinand!" Grover gasped.**

"Thank you Grover," Thalia breathed in relief.

**"Look away from her!" Annabeth shouted. She whipped her Yankees cap onto her head and vanished. Her invisible hands pushed Grover and me both off the bench.**

"Thank you Annabeth," Poseidon and Sally smiled at her.

"Yeah, thanks Annabeth," Percy smiled at her.

**I was on the ground, looking at Aunt Em's sandaled feet.**

**I could hear Grover scrambling off in one direction, Annabeth in another. But I was too dazed to move.**

**Then I heard a strange, rasping sound above me. My eyes rose to Aunty Em's hands, which had turned gnarled and warty, with sharp bronze talons for fingernails.**

"Scary," Piper mouthed.

**I almost looked higher, but somewhere off to my left Annabeth screamed, "No! Don't!"**

"Thank you again," Poseidon smiled at her. "I have a feeling I'm going to be saying that a lot."

Annabeth blushed.

"Damn right you are," Athena mumbled. She looked at Poseidon but noticed he ignored her.

_I didn't hurt his feelings did I? _Athena thought. _Maybe hate was a strong word._

**More rasping—the sound of tiny snakes, right above me, from ... from about where Aunty Em's head would be.**

**"Run!" Grover bleated. I heard him racing across the gravel, yelling, **_**"Maia!" **_**to kick-start his flying sneakers.**

**I couldn't move. I stared at Aunty Em's gnarled claws, and tried to fight the groggy trance the old woman had put me in.**

"Come on Percy," Nico urged.

**"Such a pity to destroy a handsome young face," she told me soothingly. **

"Handsome," Aphrodite winked at Percy who blushed and got slapped by Annabeth.

**"Stay with me, Percy. All you have to do is look up."**

**I fought the urge to obey. Instead I looked to one side and saw one of those glass spheres people put in gardens— a gazing ball. I could see Aunty Em's dark reflection in the orange glass; her headdress was gone, revealing her face as a shimmering pale circle. Her hair was moving, writhing like serpents.**

"Would not want to meet her," Leo whistled.

**Aunty Em.**

**Aunty "M."**

**How could I have been so stupid?**

"You just are," Thalia laughed. "It's natural."

"Just like you right?" Percy smiled at his favorite cousin.

**Think, I told myself. How did Medusa die in the myth?**

"My son cut her head off," Zeus smiled.

**But I couldn't think. Something told me that in the myth Medusa had been asleep when she was attacked by my namesake, Perseus. She wasn't anywhere near asleep now. If she wanted, she could take those talons right now and rake open my face.**

"I rather not," Sally said quietly.

**"The Gray-Eyed One did this to me, Percy," Medusa said, and she didn't sound anything like a monster. Her voice invited me to look up, to sympathize with a poor old grandmother. "Annabeth's mother, the cursed Athena, turned me from a beautiful woman into this."**

"You did it to yourself," Athena said. "Next time, you won't insult a goddess."

**"Don't listen to her!" Annabeth's voice shouted, some where in the statuary. "Run, Percy!"**

**"Silence!" Medusa snarled. Then her voice modulated back to a comforting purr. "You see why I must destroy the girl, Percy. She is my enemy's daughter. I shall crush her statue to dust. But you, dear Percy, you need not suffer."**

"You will never go near my daughter," Athena shouted.

**"No," I muttered. I tried to make my legs move.**

**"Do you really want to help the gods?" Medusa asked. "Do you understand what awaits you on this foolish quest, Percy? What will happen if you reach the Underworld? Do not be a pawn of the Olympians, my dear. **

"He isn't a pawn," Poseidon shouted.

**You would be better off as a statue. Less pain. Less pain."**

"Don't listen to her Percy," Chiron whispered.

**"Percy!" Behind me, I heard a buzzing sound, like a two-hundred-pound hummingbird in a nosedive. Grover yelled, "Duck!"**

**I turned, and there he was in the night sky, flying in from twelve o'clock with his winged shoes fluttering, Grover, holding a tree branch the size of a baseball bat. His eyes were shut tight, his head twitched from side to side. He was navigating by ears and nose alone.**

**"Duck!" he yelled again. "I'll get her!"**

**That finally jolted me into action. Knowing Grover, I was sure he'd miss Medusa and nail me.**

"Thanks for the confidence in me Perce," Grover grumbled.

"I was wrong okay."

**I dove to one side.**

_**Thwack!**_

**At first I figured it was the sound of Grover hitting a tree. Then Medusa roared with rage.**

"Nice shot Grover," The Stolls cheered.

"For a satyr, not bad," Ares acknowledged him.

"Yeah goat boy, you did well," Thalia smirked.

Grover blushed as everyone threw out compliments.

**"You miserable satyr," she snarled. "I'll add you to my collection!"**

**"That was for Uncle Ferdinand!" Grover yelled back.**

"You tell her Grover," Katie smiled.

**I scrambled away and hid in the statuary while Grover swooped down for another pass.**

_**Ker-whack!**_

**"Arrgh!" Medusa yelled, her snake-hair hissing and spit ting.**

**Right next to me, Annabeth's voice said, "Percy!"**

**I jumped so high my feet nearly cleared a garden gnome. "Jeez! Don't do that!"**

"Seriously Annabeth, so many pranks are possible with that hat," Conner said to her. "You'd be a YouTube sensation."

**Annabeth took off her Yankees cap and became visible. 'You have to cut her head off."**

**"What? Are you crazy? Let's get out of here."**

_Can't show that kind of attitude at the Roman Camp Percy. _Jason thought. _They'll eat you alive. _

"That doesn't sound like Perce," Nico noted.

"I was scared to the point that I was about to crap my pants. Also, I was overwhelmed with everything." Percy defended himself.

**"Medusa is a menace. She's evil. I'd kill her myself, but..." Annabeth swallowed, as if she were about to make a difficult admission. "But you've got the better weapon. Besides, I'd never get close to her. She'd slice me to bits because of my mother. You—you've got a chance."**

**"What? I can't—"**

**"Look, do you want her turning more innocent people into statues?"**

"Smart move Annabeth," Thalia nodded at her. "You basically twisted his arm."

"I had too," Annabeth said quietly. "We couldn't have her kill more people."

"But we stopped her." Percy smiled.

**She pointed to a pair of statue lovers, a man and a woman with their arms around each other, turned to stone by the monster.**

**Annabeth grabbed a green gazing ball from a nearby pedestal. "A polished shield would be better." She studied the sphere critically. "The convexity will cause some distortion. The reflection's size should be off by a factor of—"**

**"Would you speak English?"**

"That is English," Athena said.

**"I **_**am!" **_**She tossed me the glass ball.**

**"Just look at her in the glass. **_**Never **_**look at her directly."**

"Was that so hard?" Apollo asked.

"Yes," Athena and Annabeth said.

**"Hey, guys!" Grover yelled somewhere above us. "I think she's unconscious!"**

_**"Roooaaarrr!"**_

**"Maybe not," Grover corrected. He went in for another pass with the tree branch.**

**"Hurry," Annabeth told me. "Grover's got a great nose, but he'll eventually crash."**

"Wow guys, the faith you have in me is amazing," Grover said sarcastically.

**I took out my pen and uncapped it. The bronze blade of Riptide elongated in my hand.**

**I followed the hissing and spitting sounds of Medusa's hair.**

**I kept my eyes locked on the gazing ball so I would only glimpse Medusa's reflection, not the real thing. Then, in the green tinted glass, I saw her.**

**Grover was coming in for another turn at bat, but this time he flew a little too low. Medusa grabbed the stick and pulled him off course. He tumbled through the air and crashed into the arms of a stone grizzly bear with a painful "Ummphh!"**

"Woops," Grover smiled.

**Medusa was about to lunge at him when I yelled, "Hey!"**

**I advanced on her, which wasn't easy, holding a sword and a glass ball. If she charged, I'd have a hard time defending myself.**

**But she let me approach—twenty feet, ten feet.**

"come on," Jason chanted. "You could do it."

**I could see the reflection of her face now. Surely it wasn't really **_**that **_**ugly. The green swirls of the gazing ball must be distorting it, making it look worse.**

"She is," Athena said.

**"You wouldn't harm an old woman, Percy," she crooned. "I know you wouldn't."**

**I hesitated, fascinated by the face I saw reflected in the glass—the eyes that seemed to burn straight through the green tint, making my arms go weak.**

**From the cement grizzly, Grover moaned, "Percy, don't listen to her!"**

**Medusa cackled. "Too late."**

**She lunged at me with her talons.**

"NO," Poseidon and Sally yelled.

**I slashed up with my sword, heard a sickening **_**shlock!,**_** then a hiss like wind rushing out of a cavern—the sound of a monster disintegrating.**

"He did it," Ares said a little shocked. A couple Furies, the Minotaur, and now Medusa.

"Of course I did it." Percy smirked.

**Something fell to the ground next to my foot. It took all my willpower not to look. I could feel warm ooze soaking into my sock, little dying snake heads tugging at my shoelaces.**

"Gross," Most girls said.

**"Oh, yuck," Grover said. His eyes were still tightly closed, but I guess he could hear the thing gurgling and steaming. "Mega-yuck."**

"Yuck, Grover, really?" Nico laughed. "How old are you?"

"32."

**Annabeth came up next to me, her eyes fixed on the sky. She was holding Medusa's black veil. She said, "Don't move."**

**Very, very carefully, without looking down, she knelt and draped the monster's head in black cloth, then picked it up. It was still dripping green juice.**

**"Are you okay?" she asked me, her voice trembling.**

**"Yeah," I decided, though I felt like throwing up my double cheeseburger. "Why didn't ... why didn't the head evaporate?"**

"It's a spoil of war right?" Jason asked.

The others nodded.

"Yeah, just like his Minotaur horn," Will said.

**"Once you sever it, it becomes a spoil of war," she said. "Same as your minotaur horn. But don't unwrap the head. It can still petrify you."**

"That's kind of cool," Leo said.

**Grover moaned as he climbed down from the grizzly statue. He had a big welt on his forehead. His green rasta cap hung from one of his little goat horns, and his fake feet had been knocked off his hooves. The magic sneakers were flying aimlessly around his head.**

**"The Red Baron," I said. "Good job, man."**

"That's better than goat boy," Grover pointed out. "A lot better."

**He managed a bashful grin. "That really was **_**not **_**fun, though. Well, the hitting-her-with-a-stick part, that was fun. But crashing into a concrete bear? **_**Not **_**fun."**

"Cleary you've never done it right," Travis said.

Grover looked at him weirdly before Rachel began again.

**He snatched his shoes out of the air. I recapped my sword. Together, the three of us stumbled back to the ware house.**

**We found some old plastic grocery bags behind the snack counter and double-wrapped Medusa's head. We plopped it on the table where we'd eaten dinner and sat around it, too exhausted to speak.**

**Finally I said, "So we have Athena to thank for this monster?"**

"WHAT," Athena screamed. "Thank your father."

"Hey, you turned her into that," Poseidon pointed. "You should have just killed her instead of creating a powerful monster."

Athena glared hard at him.

**Annabeth flashed me an irritated look. "Your dad, actually. Don't you remember? Medusa was Poseidon's girl friend. **

"I'd hardly say girlfriend," Poseidon explained to everyone.

**They decided to meet in my mother's temple. That's why Athena turned her into a monster. Medusa and her two sisters who had helped her get into the temple, they became the three gorgons. That's why Medusa wanted to slice me up, but she wanted to preserve you as a nice statue. She's still sweet on your dad. You probably reminded her of him."**

"She could be as sweet as she wants, it was a onetime thing," Poseidon said.

**My face was burning. "Oh, so now it's **_**my **_**fault we met Medusa."**

**Annabeth straightened. In a bad imitation of my voice, she said: "'It's just a photo, Annabeth. What's the harm?'"**

"Could you show us?" Conner asked.

"Can you give up pranks?" Annabeth challenged.

"Touché."

**"Forget it," I said. "You're impossible."**

**"You're insufferable."**

**"You're—"**

"Flirting," Aphrodite finished.

Annabeth and Percy were blushing so much it was probably permenant in their skin now.

**"Hey!" Grover interrupted. "You two are giving me a migraine, and satyrs don't even **_**get **_**migraines. What are we going to do with the head?"**

"Gods you and Percy were annoying," Grover complained.

"Hey…goat boy," Baby Percy grumbled at him. "Meanie."

"What?" Grover looked at him. "I'm not mean."

"Yup…you meanie," Percy insisted.

"No I'm not," Grover argued.

"GROVER," Annabeth yelled at him. "You're fighting with a baby."

"Me no baby Annabef," Percy looked at her. "Right Pipler?"

Piper looked at Annabeth with pleading eyes.

"Of course not Seaweed brain," Annabeth smiled at him before walking over and picking him up. "Grover's just joking."

"Grover, I can't believe you fighting with baby me." Laughed Percy.

"Okay," He whispered, before leaning his head on her shoulder and closing his eyes.

"Someone's tired," Hestia pointed out. "Nico dear, how many pages left?"

"1 and half Lady Hestia," Nico said before reading.

**I stared at the thing. One little snake was hanging out of a hole in the plastic. The words printed on the side of the bag said: WE APPRECIATE YOUR BUSINESS!**

**I was angry, not just with Annabeth or her mom, but with all the gods for this whole quest, for getting us blown off the road and in two major fights the very first day out from camp. At this rate, we'd never make it to L.A. alive, much less before the summer solstice.**

"So he hates everyone?" Apollo asked.

**What had Medusa said?**

_**Do not be a pawn of the Olympians, my dear. You would be better off as a statue.**_

"Don't listen to her Percy," Poseidon pleaded.

**I got up. "I'll be back."**

**"Percy," Annabeth called after me. "What are you—"**

**I searched the back of the warehouse until I found Medusa's office. Her account book showed her six most recent sales, all shipments to the Underworld to decorate Hades and Persephone's garden. **

The gods eyed Hades.

"What?" He asked. "It's for around the palace."

"Yes but why didn't you speak up if you knew it was her," Poseidon said irritated.

"Because we still have a whole book to go and the three of them are right here, so I knew they'd be fine."

**According to one freight bill, the Underworld's billing address was DOA Recording Studios, West Hollywood, California. I folded up the bill and stuffed it in my pocket.**

"That was smart of him," Athena nodded impressed.

**In the cash register I found twenty dollars, a few golden drachmas, and some packing slips for Hermes Overnight Express, each with a little leather bag attached for coins. I rummaged around the rest of the office until I found the right-size box.**

"What's he doing?" Nico asked.

Annabeth, Percy, and Grover exchanged a smile.

_You're crazy._ Annabeth smiled at her boyfriend.

**I went back to the picnic table, packed up Medusa's head, and filled out a delivery slip:**

_**The Gods**_

_**MountOlympus**_

_**600th Floor,**_

_**Empire State Building**_

_**New York, NY**_

_**With best wishes,**_

_**PERCY JACKSON**_

"WHAT," Zeus shouted. "HE'S INSULTING US!"

"I find it pretty funny," Apollo and Hermes laughed.

"Kids got guts," Ares grunted.

"I think he's trying to impress Annabeth, like a bad boy image," Aphrodite smiled.

Hades shrugged. "Who cares, I don't live here anyways."

"I think the boy is confused," Hestia said. "With all the pressure of his quest."

"I don't give a rat's ass since I'm BANNED anyways," Dionysus said.

"As long as it stays out of my work shop, I'm cool," Hephaestus said.

Demeter and Hera were just in shock and didn't voice their opinions.

"I think he's an idiot," Athena said.

"I agree with Lady Hestia," Chiron said. "He's just confused."

"I think he's my son," Poseidon smiled. "Leave it be Zeus, you are trying to kill him after all."

The gods continued their banter as the demigods discussed Percy's actions.

"Now that's a 10," The Stolls agreed.

"Reckless, I like it," Clarisse smiled. "Maybe it'll get him ruffed up."

"I'm not even surprised," Thalia shrugged. Nico agreed. "He's done some pretty stupid things."

"Yeah and so have you." Percy smirked.

"I think it's awesome," Leo said.

"I think it's something that the Romans would see as reckless, but also fearless," Jason pointed out. "I mean, he must have known there was a chance that they'd get pissed."

"From the sounds of it, some of them are," Piper said.

"I'm fine." Percy said.

"Yup…we sleep…and then cookies…Annabef?" Percy blabbered in his childish voice.

"Kid has a way with words huh?" Will smirked.

Chris shrugged. "I don't but it is me, or did Baby Percy kinda just ask Annabeth out?"

The demigods laughed as Annabeth, Percy, and Baby Percy blushed.

"ENOUGH," Zeus said. "Let's just read."

**"They're not going to like that," Grover warned. "They'll think you're impertinent."**

"I am impertinent." Percy said.

"Of course we don't like it," Zeus grumbled.

**I poured some golden drachmas in the pouch. As soon as I closed it, there was a sound like a cash register. The package floated off the table and disappeared with a **_**pop!**_

**"I **_**am **_**impertinent," I said.**

"At least he admits it," Athena said.

**I looked at Annabeth, daring her to criticize.**

"I would have, but it was funny," Annabeth said quietly.

"And you wanted to do it too." Percy joked with his girlfriend.

**She didn't. She seemed resigned to the fact that I had a major talent for ticking off the gods. "Come on," she muttered. "We need a new plan."**

* * *

Hope you enjoyed it.


	16. eating pants

"**I Ruin a Perfectly Good Bus," **Hera read.

"Now why would you do that," Travis said innocently.

"What do you mean Travis?" Conner asked. "Perce has a track record with buses; it's the second he's wrecked."

"And you are about to be the 32675023rd demigod I hurt." Percy said threateningly

**It didn't take me long to pack. I decided to leave the Minotaur horn in my cabin, which left me only an extra change of clothes and a toothbrush to stuff in a backpack Grover had found for me.**

**The camp store loaned me one hundred dollars in mortal money and twenty golden drachmas. These coins were as big as Girl Scout cookies and had images of various Greek gods stamped on one side and the Empire State Building on the other. **

"Girl Scout cookies," Apollo's mouth watered.

**The ancient mortal drachmas had been silver, Chiron told us, but Olympians never used less than pure gold. Chiron said the coins might come in handy for non-mortal transactions—whatever that meant. He gave Annabeth and me each a canteen of nectar and a Ziploc bag full of ambrosia squares, to be used only in emergencies, if we were seriously hurt. **

"Hopefully that isn't the case," Poseidon grimaced.

Athena nodded. "For once I agree with him."

**It was god food, Chiron reminded us. It would cure us of almost any injury, but it was lethal to mortals. Too much of it would make a half-blood very, very feverish. An overdose would burn us up, literally.**

**Annabeth was bringing her magic Yankees cap, which she told me had been a twelfth-birthday present from her mom. **

Annabeth smiled at Athena. "Thanks mom."

Athena smiled and noticed that BabyPercy was still perched on her lap while Percy had Annabeth in her lap.

"Look, it's an Annabeth sandwich." whispered Leo to Jason.

**She carried a book on famous classical architecture, written in Ancient Greek, to read when she got bored, and a long bronze knife, hidden in her shirt sleeve. **

**I was sure the knife would get us busted the first time we went through a metal detector.**

"When would you go through a metal detector?" Nico asked.

"Who cares, they have the mist affecting their stuff anyways," Thalia explained.

**Grover wore his fake feet and his pants to pass as human. He wore a green rasta-style cap, because when it rained his curly hair flattened and you could just see the tips of his horns. His bright orange backpack was full of scrap metal and apples to snack on. In his pocket was a set of reed pipes his daddy goat had carved for him, even though he only knew two songs: Mozart's Piano Concerto no. 12 and Hilary Duff's "So Yesterday," both of which sounded pretty bad on reed pipes.**

"I'm not that bad," Grover insisted. He turned to his friends. "Right?"

The demigods stared anywhere but at Grover.

"Gee guys, thanks," He grumbled.

**We waved good-bye to the other campers, took one last look at the strawberry fields, the ocean, and the Big House, then hiked up Half-Blood Hill to the tall pine tree that used to be Thalia, daughter of Zeus.**

A quick glare and everyone turned away from Thalia.

**Chiron was waiting for us in his wheelchair. Next to him stood the surfer dude I'd seen when I was recovering in the sick room. According to Grover, the guy was the camp's head of security. He supposedly had eyes all over his body so he could never be surprised. Today, though, he was wearing a chauffeur's uniform, so I could only see extra peepers on his hands, face and neck.**

"Must suck to play hide and seek with him," Conner said.

**"This is Argus," Chiron told me. "He will drive you into the city, and, er, well, keep an eye on things."**

"Eyes Chiron, eyes," Nico laughed.

**I heard footsteps behind us.**

**Luke came running up the hill, carrying a pair of basketball shoes.**

Annabeth, Percy, and Grover darkened at the mention of the shoes.

**"Hey!" he panted. "Glad I caught you."**

"I'm sure you are," Nico whispered.

**Annabeth blushed, the way she always did when Luke was around.**

"I was not!" Annabeth shouted blushing as well.

"Yeah right," Aphrodite smiled. "How come you're blushing then?"

"I'm not blushing, I'm−" Annabeth didn't finish her sentence beacuse her and Percy disappeared, but before they did Travis saw Annabeth's Invisibility cap in Percy's hand.

**"Just wanted to say good luck," Luke told me. "And I thought ... um, maybe you could use these."**

**He handed me the sneakers, which looked pretty normal. They even smelled kind of normal.**

**Luke said, **_**"Maia!"**_

**White bird's wings sprouted out of the heels, startling me so much, I dropped them. The shoes flapped around on the ground until the wings folded up and disappeared.**

"My shoes," Hermes smiled. He turned to his boys. "You have a pair right?"

The twins shook their heads.

"We got banned from owning them," Conner explained.

"Chiron and Mr. D didn't see the paint job on top of the big house like we did," Travis finished.

Dionysus turned to Chiron. "What they paint?"

Chiron looked down at his hooves before looking back at Dionysus. "It wrote 'Mr. D has small grapes'."

Dionysus thought for a second. _Grapes are small…_

"Eww, that's disgusting," Aphrodite shrieked. "You two are perverts!"

Athena frowned at the twins, but smiled a little when all the girls started slapping the twins while the boys laughed.

"I don't get it," Dionysus said.

Apollo smiled at his brother. "Even I get it."

_Idiot. _Artemis thought. _He just insulted himself._

**"Awesome!" Grover said.**

"Not awesome," Grover whispered.

**Luke smiled. "Those served me well when I was on my quest. Gift from Dad. Of course, I don't use them much these days..." His expression turned sad.**

Hermes felt terrible.

**I didn't know what to say. It was cool enough that Luke had come to say good-bye. I'd been afraid he might resent me for getting so much attention the last few days. But here he was giving me a magic gift... It made me blush almost as much as Annabeth.**

"I wasn't blushing!" Annabeth half shouted.

"Yes you were," Grover laughed. "So was Percy."

"No I wasn't!"t yelled a voice from outside.

**"Hey, man," I said. "Thanks."**

**"Listen, Percy ..." Luke looked uncomfortable. "A lot of hopes are riding on you. So just ... kill some monsters for me, okay?"**

_Liar. _Nico thought.

**We shook hands. Luke patted Grover's head between his horns, then gave a good-bye hug to Annabeth, who looked like she might pass out.**

"She did." whispered Grover. He got a face full of water and krill.

**After Luke was gone, I told her, "You're hyperventilating."**

**"Am not."**

**"You let him capture the flag instead of you, didn't you?"**

"Did she?" Grover simply nodded.

**"Oh ... why do I want to go anywhere with you, Percy?"**

"Yes why do you want to go anywhere with him?" Athena asked.

Annabeth was to busy in the hallway to hear as she was making out with Percy.

**She stomped down the other side of the hill, where a white SUV waited on the shoulder of the road. Argus followed, jingling his car keys.**

**I picked up the flying shoes and had a sudden bad feeling. I looked at Chiron. "I won't be able to use these, will I?"**

"Smart boy," Zeus smiled. "He knows his limits."

"Please, you're just a mean uncle," Hera smacked him. "I'm sure your children have swam before."

Hera looked over at Thalia and Jason.

"I don't really swim, especially with dad trying to kill Percy and all, I'd think the Lord Poseidon wouldn't like it,' Thalia explained.

"I could barely swim," Jason admitted. "So why test it right?"

Zeus smiled at Hera but Poseidon spoke up.

"Don't be scared, have fun in the water," He encouraged. "I won't do anything."

Zeus began a lecture about not swimming, while Piper leaned into Jason.

"I could teach you…to swim," She whispered. "If you'd like?"

Jason blushed and nodded, not trusting his voice.

Piper leaned back in her seat and was replaced by Leo whispering in Jason's ear.

"Did she just ask you out?" He asked.

"I have no clue," Jason answered. "We need a guys meeting after." Aphrodite rolled her eyes at how Jason thought that was the answer.

**He shook his head. "Luke meant well, Percy. But taking to the air ... that would not be wise for you."**

"No, it would not."

**I nodded, disappointed, but then I got an idea. "Hey, Grover. You want a magic item?"**

"That was very nice," Hestia smiled.

"Yes it was," Demeter turned to Sally. "Sally dear, you have a great boy."

"Thank you," Sally blushed. "But he's just like his father."

**His eyes lit up. "Me?"**

"Unfortunately," Grover mumbled.

"Why so blue Grover," Leo asked. "Those sound awesome." Leo turned to his father. "Hey dad, you think we could make a pair like that?"

"I think I have some prototypes," Hephaestus smiled.

**Pretty soon we'd laced the sneakers over his fake feet, and the world's first flying goat boy was ready for launch.**

"I never get tired of hearing goat-boy," Thalia laughed.

"I do," Grover said. "Trust me."

"I want Percy and Annabeth back." Thalia laughed.

"Allow me." Aphrodite took a pale of red paint and walked into the hallway. When she came back Percy and Annabeth were pissed at the fact that they had red paint on themselves and that they were interrupted.

_**"Maia!" **_**he shouted.**

**He got off the ground okay, but then fell over sideways so his backpack dragged through the grass. The winged shoes kept bucking up and down like tiny broncos.**

**"Practice," Chiron called after him. "You just need practice!"**

"Maybe if they weren't rigged," Annabeth whispered harshly.

**"Aaaaa!" Grover went flying sideways down the hill like a possessed lawn mower, heading toward the van.**

"Possessed lawn mower," Nico laughed. "Where does he get this stuff?"

"It's Percy you're talking about," Conner said. "His head is almost as messed up as us." Conner indicated to Travis.

"Thanks for including me on that one," Travis grumbled.

"He is also right here and currently pissed." Percy said with a very heavy and scary glare.

**Before I could follow, Chiron caught my arm. "I should have trained you better, Percy," he said. "If only I had more time. Hercules, Jason—they all got more training."**

"Yeah, by that time I had about 9 years of training I think," Jason remembered.

"Another memory?" Piper asked.

Jason nodded.

"The original Jason," Chiron corrected. "I was talking about the original."

"Oh…"

**"That's okay. I just wish—"**

**I stopped myself because I was about to sound like a brat. **

"You are a brat," Dionysus grumbled. "Imagine, I haven't even met you yet and I can't stand you."

"You can't stand anybody," Artemis pointed out.

**I was wishing my dad had given me a cool magic item to help on the quest, something as good as Luke's flying shoes, or Annabeth's invisible cap.**

"I do," Poseidon frowned. He turned to Chiron. "You're not giving it to him?"

**"What am I thinking?" Chiron cried. "I can't let you get away without this."**

**He pulled a pen from his coat pocket and handed it to me. It was an ordinary disposable ballpoint, black ink, removable cap. Probably cost thirty cents.**

"That's…awesome?" Leo offered. He caught the weird glances from Piper and Jason and sighed. "Sorry bad lie…that blows!"

**"Gee," I said. "Thanks."**

"When will you learn Percy," Katie smiled. "Not everything is as it seems." Percy simply shrugged his shoulders.

**"Percy, that's a gift from your father. I've kept it for years, not knowing you were who I was waiting for. But the prophecy is clear to me now. You are the one."**

"CONNER," Travis shouted in a voice of authority. He turned to his brother and stood in front of him. "For your services to camp and your acts of bravery and selfness in battle, I hear by declare you worthy enough to be the sole owner of the 30 cent pen!"

Conner, keeping a straight face, bowed to his brother as Travis pulled a pen out of his back pocket and handed it to him.

"Thank you, your majesty," Conner said in a thick British accent. "I'm honored."

"No, you're an idiot," Thalia laughed. "Gods what is up with you too?"

Everyone was laughing at their little act. Even Percy was laughing having forgotten about the paint.

**I remembered the field trip to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, when I'd vaporized Mrs. Dodds. Chiron had thrown me a pen that turned into a sword. Could this be ... ?**

"It is," Chiron and Poseidon smiled.

**I took off the cap, and the pen grew longer and heavier in my hand. In half a second, I held a shimmering bronze sword with a double-edged blade, a leather-wrapped grip, and a flat hilt riveted with gold studs. It was the first weapon that actually felt balanced in my hand.**

"I remember now," Jason said. "In the first chapter right?"

"Yeah," Everyone nodded.

"That's awesome, it's like your coin," Leo said.

"Yeah, but it's strange how it's the only weapon that feels right in his hands," Jason pointed out. "It's like it was made for him."

**"The sword has a long and tragic history that we need not go into," Chiron told me.**

Artemis thought about Zoe and felt her blood boil at the thought of Hercules.

**"Its name is Anaklusmos."**

**"'Riptide,'" I translated, surprised the Ancient Greek came so easily.**

"Love and hate the sword," Nico said.

"Hate?" Katie asked.

"I've been at the receiving end a couple times."

"We all have. Even Annabeth." Thalia said grumply.

**"Use it only for emergencies," Chiron said, "and only against monsters. No hero should harm mortals unless absolutely necessary, of course, but this sword wouldn't harm them in any case."**

**I looked at the wickedly sharp blade. "What do you mean it wouldn't harm mortals?" How could it not?"**

**"The sword is celestial bronze. Forged by the Cyclopes, tempered in the heart of Mount Etna, cooled in the River Lethe. It's deadly to monsters, to any creature from the Underworld, provided they don't kill you first. But the blade will pass through mortals like an illusion. They simply are not important enough for the blade to kill.**

**And I should warn you: as a demigod, you can be killed by either celestial or normal weapons. You are **_**twice **_**as vulnerable."**

"Well that sucks," Nico said. "But does that mean we're twice as important?"

The Stolls laughed at his joke but the glare from Annabeth shut them up pretty quickly.

**"Good to know."**

**"Now recap the pen."**

**I touched the pen cap to the sword tip and instantly Riptide shrank to a ballpoint pen again. I tucked it in my pocket, a little nervous, because I was famous for losing pens at school.**

"Implant a GPS, "Hephaestus offered.

**"You can't," Chiron said.**

**"Can't what?"**

**"Lose the pen," he said. **

"Already installed?" Hephaestus looked at Grover.

"No, no GPS."

**"It is enchanted. It will always reappear in your pocket. Try it."**

The three demigods looked at Chiron expecting him to deny it, but he didn't.

"Seriously?" Leo asked. The demigods nodded. "That's freaking crazy; cooler than your coin Jason."

"Hey," Jason protested, but quickly closed his mouth. He to thought it was pretty cool. "Yeah, that is cool."

"Your coin is pretty awesome though." Percy said.

**I was wary, but I threw the pen as far as I could down the hill and watched it disappear in the grass.**

**"It may take a few moments," Chiron told me. "Now check your pocket."**

**Sure enough, the pen was there.**

"That's pretty handy," Piper added.

"It is," Nico agreed. "Saved a lot of lives."

**"Okay, that's **_**extremely **_**cool," I admitted. "But what if a mortal sees me pulling out a sword?"**

**Chiron smiled. "Mist is a powerful thing, Percy."**

Piper took a quick glance at Jason and frowned. _Stupid Mist. I lost my fake/real boyfriend because of that._

**"Mist?"**

**"Yes. Read **_**The Iliad. **_**It's full of references to the stuff. Whenever divine or monstrous elements mix with the mortal world, they generate Mist, which obscures the vision of humans. **

"Unless you're clear sighted," Sally said.

**You will see things just as they are, being a half-blood, but humans will interpret things quite differently. Remarkable, really, the lengths to which humans will go to fit things into their version of reality."**

**I put Riptide back in my pocket.**

**For the first time, the quest felt real. I was actually leaving Half-Blood Hill. **

**I was heading west with no adult supervision, no backup plan, not even a cell phone.**

"When he says it like that, it sounds impossible," Travis said. "Must have been tough."

"Gods was it," Annabeth agreed. "And scary, but worth it."

Percy held Annabeth a little tighter while Thalia smiled and Athena glared.

**(Chiron said cell phones were traceable by monsters; if we used one, it would be worse than sending up a flare.) I had no weapon stronger than a sword to fight off monsters and reach the Land of the Dead.**

**"Chiron ..." I said. "When you say the gods are immortal... I mean, there was a time **_**before **_**them, right?"**

**"Four ages before them, actually. The Time of the Titans was the Fourth Age, sometimes called the Golden Age, **

"Time of the Titans," Hades spat. "Time of disasters is more like it."

"Even I agree with the lunatic," Demeter said.

**which is definitely a misnomer. This, the time of Western civilization and the rule of Zeus, is the Fifth Age."**

"Damn right I rule," Zeus shouted.

The throne room erupted with laughter from the gods and goddesses.

**"So what was it like ... before the gods?"**

"Not good hero," Hestia grimaced.

**Chiron pursed his lips. "Even I am not old enough to remember that, child, but I know it was a time of darkness and savagery for mortals. Kronos, the lord of the Titans, **

"Father," Poseidon spat.

**called his reign the Golden Age because men lived innocent and free of all knowledge. But that was mere propaganda. The Titan king cared nothing for your kind except as appetizers or a source of cheap entertainment. **

"I'll show him cheap entertainment," Annabeth said angrily.

**It was only in the early reign of Lord Zeus, when Prometheus the good Titan brought fire to mankind, that your species began to progress, and even then Prometheus was branded a radical thinker. Zeus punished him severely, as you may recall. Of course, eventually the gods warmed to humans, and Western civilization was born."**

"Yes, they love us," Apollo smiled. "Proofs in the room."

**"But the gods can't die now, right? I mean, as long as Western civilization is alive, they're alive. So ... even if I failed, nothing could happen so bad it would mess up **_**every thing, **_**right?"**

"Actually, we'd split into two groups and fight until everything around us was destroyed," Hermes said casually. The gods glared and he shrugged. "What?"

**Chiron gave me a melancholy smile. "No one knows how long the Age of the West will last, Percy. The gods are immortal, yes. But then, so were the Titans. **_**They **_**still exist, locked away in their various prisons, forced to endure end less pain and punishment, reduced in power, but still very much alive. May the Fates forbid that the gods should ever suffer such a doom, or that we should ever return to the darkness and chaos of the past. All we can do, child, is follow our destiny."**

"Unfortunately Percy's destiny sucks," Thalia said.

"It was at a time yours though." Percy said.

**"Our destiny ... assuming we know what that is."**

**"Relax," Chiron told me. "Keep a clear head. And remember, you may be about to prevent the biggest war in human history."**

"Nice Chiron, real nice," Conner smiled.

Chiron blushed as everyone laughed.

"No pressure." Travis laughed.

**"Relax," I said. "I'm very relaxed."**

"I wouldn't be," Leo commented. "He has to prevent a war, sounds like a lot of pressure."

"That's nothing," Annabeth added. "Some of the choices he has to make are ridiculous."

"But if I have you Wise Girl then they won't be so tough." Percy whispered.

**When I got to the bottom of the hill, I looked back. Under the pine tree that used to be Thalia, daughter of Zeus, Chiron was now standing in full horse-man form, holding his bow high in salute. Just your typical summer-camp send-off by your typical centaur.**

"But of course," Travis said.

**Argus drove us out of the countryside and into western Long Island. It felt weird to be on a highway again, Annabeth and Grover sitting next to me as if we were normal carpoolers. After two weeks at Half-Blood Hill, the real world seemed like a fantasy. I found myself staring at every McDonald's, every kid in the back of his parents' car, every billboard and shopping mall.**

**"So far so good," I told Annabeth. "Ten miles and not a single monster."**

"Way to jinx it Perce," Nico laughed. "Did you really say that?"

"Yeah," Percy nodded.

**She gave me an irritated look. "It's bad luck to talk that way, seaweed brain."**

"Yes daughter, stay irritated, that's the only way to deal with sea spawns and their father," Athena said.

"Oh come on, a little harsh," Poseidon whined. "He's just learning, and the only reason your daughter is irritated is because of are rivalry." He turned to Annabeth. "Am I right? If your mother and I were in a regular relationship would you treat Percy differently?"

Annabeth blushed under the gaze of her mother and Poseidon.

"You're scaring her," Aphrodite interrupted. "But forget her answer, I heard the word 'relationship' in that sentence Poseidon, does that mean…"

"NO," Both gods yelled.

Annabeth was hiding her expression in Percy's chest while Percy hid his in her hair.

**"Remind me again—why do you hate me so much?"**

"Yeah Annabeth, why do you hate him?" Thalia teased.

"Yeah, I thought you looooooved him," Nico joked.

Annabeth blushed, Aphrodite shrieked, and Athena choked.

"WHAT!"

"It's a joke," Grover insisted after the glare he got from Annabeth. "You know, those two idiots have been doing it the whole time."

The Stolls nodded.

"She's right," Travis agreed.

"But not on the idiot part," Conner added. "Maybe him, but not me."

Annabeth disappeared and a minute later so did Percy.

"Why do they keep doing that?" Asked Thalia.

"Don't worry. The paint has tiny litle cameras that show were they are and what they're doing. Aphrodite turned a t.v on and it showed Percy and Annabeth making out in the middle of the woods. The guys were hooting and the girls were cooing. Athena was glaring but then she remebered that Annabeth was happy and that was all she careed about.

**"I don't hate you."**

**"Could've fooled me."**

"He has a point," Jason pointed out. Annabeth gave him a quick glance. "Sorry."

**She folded her cap of invisibility. "Look ... we're just not supposed to get along, okay? Our parents are rivals."**

**"Why?"**

**She sighed. "How many reasons do you want? One time my mom caught Poseidon with his girlfriend in Athena's temple, which is **_**hugely **_**disrespectful.**

"Yes, very disrespectful," Athena glared at him. "Out of all the places, why there?"

"Um…" Poseidon stuttered.

_Great, what the heck do I say now? _Poseidon thought. '_Oh that, it was innocent, just wanted to get you jealous because I…_

_LOVE HER!_ A voice shrieked in Poseidon's head. He turned to see Aphrodite beaming at him. _OH MY GODS, all this time, and I never knew. This is epic, what are you going to say? What is she going to say? OH MY GODS, what about Sally? Does she still love you? Do you love her? Is this another triangle? Chocolate or caramel?_

_APHRDOTIE. _Poseidon roared back. _Please, you're killing me. Can we talk about this later?_

_Sure thing stud._ Aphrodite thought back. _Now for your situation, just say 'why do you care, jealous'?_

Poseidon smiled and looked at Athena who was still glaring at him.

"Why do you even care? Jealous?" Poseidon smiled.

Athena's face turned bright red, and an outburst was on the tip of her tongue, but Hades quickly started to read.

**Another time, Athena and Poseidon competed to be the patron god for the city of Athens. Your dad created some stupid saltwater spring for his gift. My mom created the olive tree. The people saw that her gift was better, so they named the city after her."**

"Yes, I won," Athena smiled at him. "Take that."

Poseidon rolled his eyes.

**"They must really like olives."**

**"Oh, forget it."**

**"Now, if she'd invented pizza—**_**that **_**I could understand."**

"He has a point," Apollo agreed.

"You're an idiot," Athena looked at him.

"You're beautiful," Apollo flirted.

Athena quickly blushed, as Poseidon glared secretively before dousing Apollo with water.

"Not cool uncle, not cool," Apollo whined.

"You're interrupting the book," Poseidon glared.

Hades turned back to the book, but before that Aphrodite smiled at Apollo.

_Good work sunshine. _She thought. _It'll be too easy._

_Glad to be of service_. Apollo smiled back.

_Did Poseidon just get jealous? _Athena thought as Hades began to read.

**"I said, forget it!"**

**In the front seat, Argus smiled. He didn't say anything, but one blue eye on the back of his neck winked at me.**

"Wow, he knew back then," Thalia whispered.

**Traffic slowed us down in Queens. By the time we got into Manhattan it was sunset and starting to rain.**

**Argus dropped us at the Greyhound Station on the Upper East Side, not far from my mom and Gabe's apartment. Taped to a mailbox was a soggy flyer with my picture on it: HAVE YOU SEEN THIS BOY?**

**I ripped it down before Annabeth and Grover could notice.**

"I like Annabef!" Yelled Baby Percy.

Athena just stared while the rest of the throne room cracked up.

**Argus unloaded our bags, made sure we got our bus tickets, then drove away, the eye on the back of his hand opening to watch us as he pulled out of the parking lot.**

**I thought about how close I was to my old apartment. On a normal day, my mom would be home from the candy store by now. Smelly Gabe was probably up there right now, playing poker, not even missing her.**

Sally smiled at Percy's thoughts but then frowned at the mention of Gabe. In the story they were married, but in her time they were just seeing each other.

_I can't believe I have to marry that monster. _She thought. _It's for Percy, remember._

**Grover shouldered his backpack. He gazed down the street in the direction I was looking. "You want to know why she married him, Percy?"**

**I stared at him. "Were you reading my mind or some thing?"**

**"Just your emotions." He shrugged. **

"Like it's no big deal," Travis shrugged.

**"Guess I forgot to tell you satyrs can do that. You were thinking about your mom and your stepdad, right?"**

**I nodded, wondering what else Grover might've forgotten to tell me.**

**"Your mom married Gabe for **_**you," **_**Grover told me. "You call him 'Smelly,' but you've got no idea. The guy has this aura…. Yuck. I can smell him from here. I can smell traces of him on you, and you haven't been near him for a week."**

"That's disgusting," Most said.

**"Thanks," I said. "Where's the nearest shower?"**

**"You should be grateful, Percy. Your stepfather smells so repulsively human he could mask the presence of any demigod. As soon as I took a whiff inside his Camaro, I knew: Gabe has been covering your scent for years. If you hadn't lived with him every summer, you probably would've been found by monsters a long time ago. Your mom stayed with him to protect you. **

Everyone in the room turned to Sally with wide eyes.

"I had my suspicions, but to actually hear the truth…" Athena said quietly. "You truly are remarkable Sally Jackson."

"Yeah, you're pretty cool Sally," Apollo smiled. "Anytime you want to party with me and Hermes, call me up."

"Hermes and I," Athena corrected.

"Forget my idiot brother," Artemis turned to her. "You're an amazing woman and an even better mother."

"That she is," Poseidon smiled at her. "Thank you Sally, for protecting him."

Sally blushed at all the great comments. "He's my baby, I'd do anything."

Hera sniffled a cry and smiled at her.

Thalia, who smiled at Sally, frowned a little about not having a mother who cared about her like that, but quickly dismissed it. She had Artemis as a mentor and even Sally in their own time who looked out for her at times.

**She was a smart lady. She must've loved you a lot to put up with that guy—if that makes you feel any better."**

"Probably made him feel worse," Thalia pointed out. "You know Percy Grover, now he'll feel bad.

**It didn't, but I forced myself not to show it.**

"See," Thalia said.

**I'll see her again, I thought. She isn't gone.**

Sally smiled.

**I wondered if Grover could still read my emotions, mixed up as they were. I was glad he and Annabeth were with me, but I felt guilty that I hadn't been straight with them. I hadn't told them the real reason I'd said yes to this crazy quest.**

"Ah, now the real reason," Apollo smiled.

**The truth was, I didn't care about retrieving Zeus's lightning bolt, or saving the world, or even helping my father out of trouble. **

The gods frowned.

**The more I thought about it, I resented Poseidon for never visiting me, never helping my mom, never even sending a lousy child-support check. He'd only claimed me because he needed a job done.**

Poseidon bowed down in shame.

"He loves you now Lord Poseidon," Thalia offered.

**All I cared about was my mom. Hades had taken her unfairly, and Hades was going to give her back.**

"Your son has guts brother," Hades smiled. "But I doubt my future self would do such a thing."

"Percy's crazy," Leo whispered to Jason and Piper.

"Yes, but incredibly sweet," Piper pointed out.

Jason frowned but let it go.

_**You will be betrayed by one who calls you a friend, **_**the Oracle whispered in my mind. **_**You will fail to save what matters most in the end.**_

"Got to hate prophecies," Leo said.

_**Shut up, **_**I told it.**

**The rain kept coming down.**

**We got restless waiting for the bus and decided to play some Hacky Sack with one of Grover's apples. Annabeth was unbelievable.**

"At what, Hacky Sack? Or just in general?" Aphrodite snickered. "Gods I love this boy's mind!"

**She could bounce the apple off her knee, her elbow, her shoulder, whatever. I wasn't too bad myself.**

"Big head much," Thalia laughed.

**The game ended when I tossed the apple toward Grover and it got too close to his mouth. In one mega goat bite, our Hacky Sack disappeared—core, stem, and all.**

"Gods Grover, you eat everything," Katie laughed.

"Yes," Dionysus agreed. "But if I hear you eat my cards again, we'll be having a talk."

**Grover blushed. He tried to apologize, but Annabeth and I were too busy cracking up.**

**Finally the bus came. As we stood in line to board, Grover started looking around, sniffing the air like he smelled his favorite school cafeteria delicacy—enchiladas.**

**"What is it?" I asked.**

**"I don't know," he said tensely. "Maybe it's nothing."**

**But I could tell it wasn't nothing. I started looking over my shoulder, too.**

**I was relieved when we finally got on board and found seats together in the back of the bus. We stowed our back packs. Annabeth kept slapping her Yankees cap nervously against her thigh.**

**As the last passengers got on, Annabeth clamped her hand onto my knee. **

"Wow, serious touching going on!" Thalia laughed.

"Not like that," Annabeth shouted over the roar of laughter. Her and Percy had come back.

"Right. And I'm not beautiful," Aphrodite smiled. "You can't fool me Annabeth."

_Really? _Annabeth thought. _I've been doing pretty well so far. _

Percy was blushing crimson red.

**"Percy."**

**An old lady had just boarded the bus. She wore a crumpled velvet dress, lace gloves, and a shapeless orange-knit hat that shadowed her face, and she carried a big paisley purse. When she tilted her head up, her black eyes glittered, and my heart skipped a beat.**

**It was Mrs. Dodds. Older, more withered, but definitely the same evil face.**

"Why you?" Poseidon glared at Hades. "Seriously, he has enough problems with Zeus accusing him, and now you trying to kill him."

Hades grumbled. _So I read for nothing!_

**I scrunched down in my seat.**

**Behind her came two more old ladies: one in a green hat, one in a purple hat. Otherwise they looked exactly like Mrs. Dodds—same gnarled hands, paisley handbags, wrinkled velvet dresses. Triplet demon grandmothers.**

"Three Furies!" Poseidon roared. "Give them a break."

"Yes I agree," Athena glared at Hades. "Not only is the boy there, but so is my daughter, and the satyr. And I don't appreciate you trying to kill my daughter!"

**They sat in the front row, right behind the driver. The two on the aisle crossed their legs over the walkway, making an X. It was casual enough, but it sent a clear message: nobody leaves.**

"Great," Athena mumbled. She looked at her daughter, scared for her life.

_She's here, she's fine._ Athena thought.

**The bus pulled out of the station, and we headed through the slick streets of Manhattan. "She didn't stay dead long," I said, trying to keep my voice from quivering. "I thought you said they could be dispelled for a lifetime."**

**"I said if you're **_**lucky**_**," Annabeth said. "You're obviously not."**

"Understatement," Nico said. "Percy' has the worst luck out of any of us."

"Yeah I agree with death breath," Thalia said. "He does have shitty luck."

**"All three of them," Grover whimpered. **_**"Di immortales!"**_

**"It's okay," Annabeth said, obviously thinking hard. "The Furies. The three worst monsters from the Underworld. No problem. No problem. We'll just slip out the windows."**

"Way to sound optimistic," Nico said.

**"They don't open," Grover moaned.**

"What kind of design is that," Hephaestus said. "Every bus window should be able to open, in case of emergencies."

**"A back exit?" she suggested.**

**There wasn't one. Even if there had been, it wouldn't have helped. By that time, we were on Ninth Avenue, heading for the Lincoln Tunnel.**

**"They won't attack us with witnesses around," I said. "Will they?"**

"Oh they will," Hades looked up to see the glares. "Sorry."

**"Mortals don't have good eyes," Annabeth reminded me. "Their brains can only process what they see through the Mist."**

**"They'll see three old ladies killing us, won't they?"**

"Old ladies," The Stolls laughed.

**She thought about it. "Hard to say. But we can't count on mortals for help. Maybe an emergency exit in the roof ... ?"**

**We hit the Lincoln Tunnel, and the bus went dark except for the running lights down the aisle. It was eerily quiet without the sound of the rain.**

**Mrs. Dodds got up. In a flat voice, as if she'd rehearsed it, she announced to the whole bus: "I need to use the rest-room."**

"Not something we wanted to know," Travis gagged.

"It's a cover up," Katie shot back.

"Well what if it isn't," Travis shot back.

**"So do I," said the second sister.**

**"So do I," said the third sister.**

Katie smiled but Travis shrugged.

"So they're weird," He said. "Maybe they need help wiping or something."

"That's disgusting," She answered back. "Can we please drop the subject?"

Percy and Annabeth were both trying not to hurl.

**They all started coming down the aisle.**

**"I've got it," Annabeth said. "Percy, take my hat."**

**"What?"**

**"You're the one they want. Turn invisible and go up the aisle. Let them pass you. Maybe you can get to the front and get away."**

"Won't do it," Percy said. "I'd never leave you guys."

"I know," Annabeth smiled. Percy looked at Annabeth like a blind man seeing the sun for the very first time.

Most smiled at Percy's personality, but not Athena.

_Very kind, but very dangerous flaw to have. _She thought. _Only time will tell if he is capable of handling a tough situation._

**"But you guys—"**

**"There's an outside chance they might not notice us," Annabeth said. "You're a son of one of the Big Three. Your smell might be overpowering."**

**"I can't just leave you."**

"Good friend," Leo pointed out.

"Amazing friend," Nico corrected.

**"Don't worry about us," Grover said. "Go!"**

**My hands trembled. I felt like a coward, but I took the Yankees cap and put it on.**

**When I looked down, my body wasn't there anymore.**

"Obviously."

**I started creeping up the aisle. I managed to get up ten rows, then duck into an empty seat just as the Furies walked past.**

**Mrs. Dodds stopped, sniffing, and looked straight at me. My heart was pounding.**

**Apparently she didn't see anything. She and her sisters kept going.**

"Well the plan worked, but what about the others," Apollo asked.

"If you shut up will find out," Artemis snapped.

**I was free. I made it to the front of the bus. We were almost through the Lincoln Tunnel now. I was about to press the emergency stop button when I heard hideous wailing from the back row.**

**The old ladies were not old ladies anymore. Their faces were still the same—I guess those couldn't get any uglier—but their bodies had shriveled into leathery brown hag bodies with bat's wings and hands and feet like gargoyle claws. Their handbags had turned into fiery whips.**

**The Furies surrounded Grover and Annabeth, lashing their whips, hissing: "Where is it? Where?"**

_It. _Athena thought. _He, where is he. Right?_

**The other people on the bus were screaming, cowering in their seats. They saw **_**something, **_**all right.**

**"He's not here!" Annabeth yelled. "He's gone!"**

**The Furies raised their whips.**

"NO," Athena shouted.

**Annabeth drew her bronze knife. Grover grabbed a tin can from his snack bag and prepared to throw it.**

**What I did next was so impulsive and dangerous I should've been named ADHD poster child of the year.**

"Nice," Travis laughed. "I hope I'd win a few of those."

"Please," Conner shoved his brother. "I'd own you.

**The bus driver was distracted, trying to see what was going on in his rearview mirror.**

**Still invisible, I grabbed the wheel from him and jerked it to the left. Everybody howled as they were thrown to the right, and I heard what I hoped was the sound of three Furies smashing against the windows.**

"Awesome," Hermes and Apollo shouted.

**"Hey!" the driver yelled. "Hey—whoa!"**

**We wrestled for the wheel. The bus slammed against the side of the tunnel, grinding metal, throwing sparks a mile behind us.**

**We careened out of the Lincoln Tunnel and back into the rainstorm, people and monsters tossed around the bus, cars plowed aside like bowling pins.**

**Somehow the driver found an exit. We shot off the highway, through half a dozen traffic lights, and ended up barreling down one of those New Jersey rural roads where you can't believe there's so much nothing right across the river from New York. There were woods to our left, the Hudson River to our right, and the driver seemed to be veering toward the river.**

**Another great idea: I hit the emergency brake.**

"This is going to end badly," Athena grimaced.

"Who cares," Ares smiled. "Actions picking up."

**The bus wailed, spun a full circle on the wet asphalt, and crashed into the trees. The emergency lights came on. The door flew open. The bus driver was the first one out, the passengers yelling as they stampeded after him. I stepped into the driver's seat and let them pass.**

**The Furies regained their balance. They lashed their whips at Annabeth while she waved her knife and yelled in Ancient Greek, telling them to back off. Grover threw tin cans.**

"Seriously goat-boy, we need to get you a weapon," Thalia said. "I'd even teach you."

"Forget it Thalia," Travis said. "Grover's tin cans are awesome. Good entertainment and they hurt too."

"How would you know?" Katie asked.

"Prank went wrong," Conner said. "Long story short, he chased us around with a bag full of them aimed at our heads."

Katie smiled at Grover. "Thank you!"

**I looked at the open doorway. I was free to go, but I couldn't leave my friends. I took off the invisible cap. "Hey!"**

"Idiot," Annabeth smiled.

"But you love me all the same," Percy smiled. _Gods she's beautiful._

**The Furies turned, baring their yellow fangs at me, and the exit suddenly seemed like an excellent idea. Mrs. Dodds stalked up the aisle, just as she used to do in class, about to deliver my F- math test. Every time she flicked her whip, red flames danced along the barbed leather.**

**Her two ugly sisters hopped on top of the seats on either side of her and crawled toward me like huge nasty lizards.**

**"Perseus Jackson," Mrs. Dodds said, in an accent that was definitely from somewhere farther south than Georgia. "You have offended the gods. You shall die."**

"You haven't seen anything yet," Grover smiled.

**"I liked you better as a math teacher," I told her.**

"Great comeback," Nico said.

**She growled.**

**Annabeth and Grover moved up behind the Furies cautiously, looking for an opening.**

**I took the ballpoint pen out of my pocket and uncapped it. Riptide elongated into a shimmering double-edged sword.**

"So dramatic," Demeter said. "Are you sure he's yours and not Zeus's?"

**The Furies hesitated.**

**Mrs. Dodds had felt Riptide's blade before. She obviously didn't like seeing it again.**

**"Submit now," she hissed. "And you will not suffer eternal torment."**

**"Nice try," I told her.**

**"Percy, look out!" Annabeth cried.**

"Trying to save your boyfriend, how sweet," Aphrodite smiled, trying to catch Annabeth off guard.

"Of course I would."

**Mrs. Dodds lashed her whip around my sword hand while the Furies on the either side lunged at me.**

**My hand felt like it was wrapped in molten lead, but I managed not to drop Riptide. I stuck the Fury on the left with its hilt, sending her toppling backward into a seat. I turned and sliced the Fury on the right. As soon as the blade connected with her neck, she screamed and exploded into dust. Annabeth got Mrs. Dodds in a wrestler's hold and yanked her backward while Grover ripped the whip out of her hands.**

"Everyone had nice moves except Grover," Thalia said. "Why would you grab the whip?"

"I didn't know it would be hot," He defended himself.

"Really? They live in the Underworld, everything from there probably hurts," She argued.

"HEY!" shouted Hades and Nico.

**"Ow!" he yelled. "Ow! Hot! Hot!"**

**The Fury I'd hilt-slammed came at me again, talons ready, but I swung Riptide and she broke open like a piñata.**

"Two down," Apollo said. He turned to Chiron. "For someone who just learned how to fight, you did pretty good Chiron."

Chiron smiled but shook his head. "Practice all you want, but in the real world, that's all Percy. Even you Annabeth are excelling in an actual fight."

Annabeth smiled but Grover frowned.

"Thanks, I was there too."

"And you too young satyr."

**Mrs. Dodds was trying to get Annabeth off her back. She kicked, clawed, hissed and bit, but Annabeth held on while Grover got Mrs. Dodds's legs tied up in her own whip. Finally they both shoved her backward into the aisle. Mrs. Dodds tried to get up, but she didn't have room to flap her bat wings, so she kept falling down.**

**"Zeus will destroy you!" she promised. "Hades will have your soul!"**

"Choose," Poseidon said sarcastically. "Which one wants him more?"

_**"Braccas meas vescimini!"**_** I yelled.**

Jason silently laughed at the Latin.

**I wasn't sure where the Latin came from. **

**I think it meant "Eat my pants!"**

There was a thud and everybody saw that Hermes, Apollo, and Leo were shaking on the floor with laughter. They all got splashed with three ten foot waves.

**Thunder shook the bus. The hair rose on the back of my neck.**

**"Get out!" Annabeth yelled at me. "Now!" I didn't need any encouragement.**

"Good call Annabeth," Athena smiled at her daughter and then glared at her father. "You'd actually hurt my daughter, father?"

Zeus shifted uncomfortably.

**We rushed outside and found the other passengers wandering around in a daze, arguing with the driver, or running around in circles yelling, "We're going to die!" A Hawaiian-shirted tourist with a camera snapped my photograph before I could recap my sword.**

"STALKER," The Stolls shouted.

**"Our bags!" Grover realized. "We left our—"**

_**BOOOOOM!**_

**The windows of the bus exploded as the passengers ran for cover. Lightning shredded a huge crater in the roof, **

"He better be fine Zeus," Poseidon glared at him. "All of them!"

"They are," Zeus complained. "Look at them!"

Poseidon glared harder. "You are lucky that Percy isn't hurt."

**but an angry wail from inside told me Mrs. Dodds was not yet dead.**

**"Run!" Annabeth said. "She's calling for reinforcements! We have to get out of here!"**

"You speak Fury?" Conner asked.

"No, but clearly you speak stupid!" She shot back. "Its common sense what she was doing."

**We plunged into the woods as the rain poured down, the bus in flames behind us, and nothing but darkness ahead.**

"Percy, you have to teach us how to be funny in the most dangerous situations." Leo said.


	17. SORRY!

I messed up the chapters. The one after getting a quest should be eating pants but i doubled offered a quest. SORRY guys.


	18. reading poodle

Hey guys! So I mixed up the chapters. Sorry about that.

* * *

"**We Get Advice from a Poodle,"** Aphrodite read.

"I love poodles," Aphrodite smiled brightly. "I have a baby one that I carry all the time."

"Really," Conner asked. "Where is it now?"

Aphrodite smile disappeared. "That's a good question."

No one noticed the grim look on Ares face. _I knew that wasn't a rat._

**We were pretty miserable that night.**

"When aren't you on a quest," Thalia said.

Jason, Leo, and Piper all agreed. For their first quest together, it was definitely hard for all of them.

**We camped out in the woods, a hundred yards from the main road, in a marshy clearing that local kids had obviously been using for parties.**

**The ground was littered with flattened soda cans and fast-food wrappers.**

"Horrible mortals," Demeter frowned. "Pan would be annoyed reading this."

"Trust me, he is," Grover mumbled quietly. "And so am I."

**We'd taken some food and blankets from Aunty Em's, but we didn't dare light a fire to dry our damp clothes. The Furies and Medusa had provided enough excitement for one day. We didn't want to attract anything else.**

"I hope not," Poseidon agreed. "You're a glutton for punishment huh?"

Percy looked up at his father and smiled. "No, just bad luck."

**We decided to sleep in shifts. I volunteered to take first watch.**

**Annabeth curled up on the blankets and was snoring as soon as her head hit the ground.**

"I do not snore," Annabeth huffed in annoyance as the others laughed.

Percy and Grover were really quite while Annabeth said that but Baby Percy yelled, "Annabef snore."

The throne room erupted into laughters when he said that and Annabeth hid her face in Percy's chest.

**Grover fluttered with his flying shoes to the lowest bough of a tree, put his back to the trunk, and stared at the night sky.**

**"Go ahead and sleep," I told him. "I'll wake you if there's trouble."**

**He nodded, but still didn't close his eyes. "It makes me sad, Percy."**

"Random." Piper laughed at Grover.

**"What does? The fact that you signed up for this stupid quest?"**

"I'd be sad too," Leo agreed. "I mean, you've died nearly twice in a span of hours and you have pretty much nowhere to go."

**"No. **_**This **_**makes me sad." He pointed at all the garbage on the ground. "And the sky. You can't even see the stars. They've polluted the sky. This is a terrible time to be a satyr."**

"I agree with you on that satyr," Zeus grumbled. "My beautiful sky is being destroyed."

Grover was about to smile but realized that Zeus would be yelling at him soon once he found out the truth about Thalia and who Grover really was.

**"Oh, yeah. I guess you'd be an environmentalist."**

"Smart ass," Clarisse smirked.

**He glared at me. "Only a human wouldn't be. Your species is clogging up the world so fast ... ah, never mind. It's useless to lecture a human. **

All the demigods glared at Grover.

"I'm your friend Grover, but I don't like being talked down to as if humans are second rate trash," Percy said.

**At the rate things are going, I'll never find Pan."**

"Looking for my son are you?" Hermes asked a little interested.

"Who cares," Dionysus cut off before Grover could answer. "He isn't going to find him."

Grover smiled a little, knowing how wrong Dionysus really was.

**"Pam? Like the cooking spray?"**

"He really is your son," Athena face palmed. She looked at Poseidon and saw him smiling at her with Percy smiling at her as well. "What?"

They both shrugged, as if they had practiced it.

"Nothing," Poseidon said.

"Pam," Conner chuckled silently.

**"Pan!" he cried indignantly. "P-A-N. The great god Pan! What do you think I want a searcher's license for?"**

"Great god," Hades laughed. "Please satyr, he's just a minor god."

Grover wanted to protest but thought better of complaining to a god, let alone Hades.

Annabeth though quickly flashed a look over at Hades who was smiling.

_It's comments like that that turned campers against us. _Annabeth thought.

**A strange breeze rustled through the clearing, temporarily overpowering the stink of trash and muck. It brought the smell of berries and wildflowers and clean rain water, things that might've once been in these woods. Suddenly I was nostalgic for something I'd never known.**

**"Tell me about the search," I said.**

**Grover looked at me cautiously, as if he were afraid I was just making fun.**

"I can't believe you thought I would make fun of you." Percy said sounding hurt.

**"The God of Wild Places disappeared two thousand years ago," he told me. "A sailor off the coast of Ephesos heard a mysterious voice crying out from the shore, 'Tell them that the great god Pan has died!' When humans heard the news, they believed it. They've been pillaging Pan's kingdom ever since. But for the satyrs, Pan was our lord and master. He protected us and the wild places of the earth. We refuse to believe that he died. In every generation, the bravest satyrs pledge their lives to finding Pan. They search the earth, exploring all the wildest places, hoping to find where he is hidden, and wake him from his sleep."**

"And you wish to find him," Artemis asked.

Grover nodded, a little nervous under the goddess stare. "Yeah."

"Dedication young satyr, and you'll find him eventually," She answered back.

**"And you want to be a searcher."**

**"It's my life's dream," he said. "My father was a searcher. And my Uncle Ferdinand ... the statue you saw back there—"**

"That must have sucked to see that," Will said to his friend. "Sorry about that Grover."

He gave him a small smile before turning back around.

The Stolls, who were hating every minute of the serious atmosphere, were trying desperately to think of something to ease the tension, but couldn't. It seemed like everybody was to on edge to joke when Grover and Percy were having a heart to heart.

**"Oh, right, sorry."**

**Grover shook his head. "Uncle Ferdinand knew the risks. So did my dad. But I'll succeed. I'll be the first searcher to return alive."**

"You got spunk kid, I'll give you that," Ares said.

"Yes, I agree unfortunately, but he is correct, you have heart satyr, I'll give you that," Athena nodded at him.

Grover blushed under the gazes from the gods.

"Are what exactly do you know about the heart," Aphrodite questioned.

"It's an expression Aphrodite," Athena sighed. "If you picked up a book, then maybe you'd know."

The two bickered back and forth as Chris leaned into Grover.

"Why do you think they call you satyr," Chris asked.

Grover shrugged. "Either we're not important enough to remember are names, or it makes them think they have more power that way."

**"Hang on—**_**the first?"**_

**Grover took his reed pipes out of his pocket. "No searcher has ever come back. Once they set out, they disappear. They're never seen alive again."**

"Unfortunately," Dionysus said seriously. He may hate demigods, but seeing satyr's being wiped out was hard to see.

**"Not once in two thousand years?"**

**"No."**

**"And your dad? You have no idea what happened to him?"**

**"None."**

"Sorry Grover," Jason said. "That sucks."

"It's alright, I mean, at least he died trying then not trying at all."

**"But you still want to go," I said, amazed. "I mean, you really think you'll be the one to find Pan?"**

"Doesn't seem like he has a lot of faith in you," Leo noticed.

"He was just a little shocked," Grover defended.

"I did have faith in you and look what happened." Percy said.

**"I have to believe that, Percy. Every searcher does. It's the only thing that keeps us from despair when we look at what humans have done to the world. I have to believe Pan can still be awakened."**

Hermes smiled at Grover.

**I stared at the orange haze of the sky and tried to understand how Grover could pursue a dream that seemed so hopeless. Then again, was I any better?**

Sally frowned. She didn't enjoy hearing about Percy's difficulties without her there. It broke a piece of her to hear how hard his life was.

**"How are we going to get into the Underworld?" I asked him. "I mean, what chance do we have against a god?"**

"None, against me," Hades grinned.

"You're an ass," Demeter spat. "You took his mother and you're smiling about it."

"It must have been a good reason," Hades said.

A glare from Poseidon ended the banter between the two.

**"I don't know," he admitted. "But back at Medusa's, when you were searching her office? Annabeth was telling me—"**

**"Oh, I forgot. Annabeth will have a plan all figured out."**

"You should be lucky," Annabeth snapped. "My plans have saved are kids more times then you could count."

"I am lucky." Percy smiled at Annabeth.

**"Don't be so hard on her, Percy. She's had a tough life, but she's a good person. After all, she forgave me..." His voice faltered.**

"For what?" Piper asked.

"You'll see," He said.

**"What do you mean?" I asked. "Forgave you for what?"**

"Gods Grover, it wasn't your fault," Annabeth sighed in frustration.

**Suddenly, Grover seemed very interested in playing notes on his pipes.**

**"Wait a minute," I said. "Your first keeper job was five years ago. Annabeth has been at camp five years. She wasn't ... I mean, your first assignment that went wrong—"**

Athena perked up.

**"I can't talk about it," Grover said, and his quivering lower lip suggested he'd start crying if I pressed him. "But as I was saying, back at Medusa's, Annabeth and I agreed there's something strange going on with this quest. Some thing isn't what it seems."**

"I agree," Athena said. The other gods eyed her. "I mean, why else would Hades steal the bolt and then steal his mother, yet want him to come down. It doesn't make sense."

Zeus thought for a second. "Maybe Poseidon does have the bolt and Hades thinks that if he had his son steal it, then he'd trade his mother for my master bolt and then Hades would be in control of it."

Zeus glared at his brothers after his assumption.

"I think you have too much hot air in that head of yours," Poseidon glared. "I don't know the future, but I didn't steal it."

"Let's read to see what will play out," Chiron offered. "Accusations and assumptions would be futile."

**"Well, duh. I'm getting blamed for stealing a thunder bolt that Hades took."**

"See, my son didn't steal it."

**"That's not what I mean," Grover said. "The Fur—The Kindly Ones were sort of holding back. Like Mrs. Dodds at Yancy Academy ... why did she wait so long to try to kill you? Then on the bus, they just weren't as aggressive as they could've been."**

"He has a point," Hades said.

**"They seemed plenty aggressive to me."**

"That's because you're new to the game," Jason said. "Once he has a few years under his belt, he'll know what a real threat is."

"I say he's just a wimp," Clarisse said. "I mean, its s fury, not a Titan."

"Which I fought," Percy said and glared at her.

**Grover shook his head. "They were screeching at us: 'Where is it? Where?'"**

**"Asking about me," I said.**

_But why 'it'? _Athena thought.

**"Maybe ... but Annabeth and I, we both got the feeling they weren't asking about a person. They said 'Where is **_**it**_**?' They seemed to be asking about an object."**

"Exactly," Athena agreed. "They must be looking for the bolt."

"Yeah but that means Hades doesn't have it," Hera said. "Then who has it?"

The eyed the kids who said nothing.

"Any guesses?" Jason asked Piper.

"Not a clue, I'm so confused."

Percy, Annabeth, and Grover exchanged knowing glances.

**"That doesn't make sense."**

**"I know. But if we've misunderstood something about this quest, and we only have nine days to find the master bolt..." He looked at me like he was hoping for answers, but I didn't have any.**

"Never does," Thalia smiled.

**I thought about what Medusa had said: I was being used by the gods. What lay ahead of me was worse than petrification. "I haven't been straight with you," I told Grover. "I don't care about the master bolt. I agreed to go to the Underworld so I could bring back my mother."**

Sally smiled at Percy's thoughts.

**Grover blew a soft note on his pipes. "I know that, Percy. But are you sure that's the only reason?"**

"To impress Annabeth?" Aphrodite asked innocently.

"NO," Annabeth shouted.

_Yes, _thought Percy.

**"I'm not doing it to help my father. He doesn't care about me. I don't care about him."**

"That's not true Percy, I do care for you, never doubt that," Poseidon held his son closer. "I do care."

"I know that dad." Percy smiled at him.

The second the words left Percy's mouth, all the goddesses had smiles at Poseidon and Percy.

Sally was quietly laughing at Percy's answer, and wondered how she was blessed with such a wonderful boy.

**Grover gazed down from his tree branch. "Look, Percy, I'm not as smart as Annabeth. **

"Thanks Grover," Annabeth smiled at him.

**I'm not as brave as you. **

"Give me a break goat boy," Clarisse grumbled.

"I wouldn't talk Clarisse, if I remember correctly, he took you out twice so far," Thalia defended her cousin.

"And you know I can beat you any time of the day." Percy said cockily.

**But I'm pretty good at reading emotions. You're glad your dad is alive. You feel good that he's claimed you, and part of you wants to make him proud. That's why you mailed Medusa's head to Olympus. You wanted him to notice what you'd done."**

"Is that true?" Poseidon smiled at the demigods. "Because if he didn't or not, I am proud."

Grover and Annabeth shrugged.

"He didn't want to admit it, but like I said, I'm pretty good at reading emotions," Grover answered.

Percy was whisiling.

**"Yeah? Well maybe satyr emotions work differently than human emotions. Because you're wrong. I don't care what he thinks."**

Poseidon felt sad for letting things get this out of hand in the future.

Sally on the other hand was smiling. She knew her baby and she could tell, even though he was older, that he was lying. He did want to impress his father, he stubborn like him.

**Grover pulled his feet up onto the branch. "Okay, Percy. Whatever."**

**"Besides, I haven't done anything worth bragging about. We barely got out of New York and we're stuck here with no money and no way west."**

"You've defeated the Minotaur, Medusa, and a couple Furies, I think you're doing good Perce," Chris said.

**Grover looked at the night sky, like he was thinking about that problem. "How about **_**I**_** take first watch, huh? You get some sleep."**

**I wanted to protest, but he started to play Mozart, soft and sweet, and I turned away, my eyes stinging. After a few bars of Piano Concerto no. 12, I was asleep.**

"No bad Grover, you actually made your music not sound terrible," Travis smiled at him.

"Thanks," He grumbled.

**In my dreams, I stood in a dark cavern before a gaping pit.**

**Gray mist creatures churned all around me, whispering rags of smoke that I somehow knew were the spirits of the dead.**

"Tartarus," Hades announced quietly.

**They tugged at my clothes, trying to pull me back, but I felt compelled to walk forward to the very edge of the chasm.**

**Looking down made me dizzy.**

"It does that to you," Nico muttered. He got a few questioning glares. "What? I got bored and went and checked it out."

**The pit yawned so wide and was so completely black, I knew it must be bottomless. Yet I had a feeling that some thing was trying to rise from the abyss, something huge and evil.**

"Impossible," Zeus whispered, but everyone heard.

Olympus was dead quiet.

"If it's him, then we have a major problem on our hands," Poseidon said. "This is a lot bigger than your master bolt brother."

"Please read on Chiron, we're jumping to conclusions anyways," Zeus said.

_**The little hero, **_**an amused voice echoed far down in the darkness. **_**Too weak, too young, but perhaps you will do.**_

"He isn't weak," Annabeth growled.

"If I remember correctly, I kicked your sorry Titan butt." Percy grumbled.

**The voice felt ancient—cold and heavy. It wrapped around me like sheets of lead.**

_**They have misled you, boy, **_**it said. **_**Barter with me.I will give you what you want.**_

**A shimmering image hovered over the void: my mother, frozen at the moment she'd dissolved in a shower of gold. Her face was distorted with pain, as if the Minotaur were still squeezing her neck. Her eyes looked directly at me, pleading: **_**Go!**_

"So it is Hades," Zeus sighed in relief.

"It isn't though is it," Jason whispered to the others. "You said you fought Saturn, that's him right?"

The other demigods shrugged, but they knew.

**I tried to cry out, but my voice wouldn't work.**

**Cold laughter echoed from the chasm.**

**An invisible force pulled me forward. It would drag me into the pit unless I stood firm.**

_**Help me rise, boy. **_**The voice became hungrier. **_**Bring me the bolt. Strike a blow against the treacherous gods!**_

"Rise?" Athena said. "But that would mean you plan to overtake Olympus, right?"

"I'm not sure," Hades said. "Let's just read."

**The spirits of the dead whispered around me, **_**No! Wake!**_

**The image of my mother began to fade. The thing in the pit tightened its unseen grip around me.**

**I realized it wasn't interested in pulling me in. It was using me to pull itself **_**out.**_

The gods each had a worried look on their faces. No one wanted to admit it, so they left it up in the air. They would finish the book and then discuss their plan of action.

_**Good, **_**it murmured. **_**Good.**_

_**Wake! **_**the dead whispered. **_**Wake!**_

**Someone was shaking me.**

**My eyes opened, and it was daylight.**

**"Well," Annabeth said, "the zombie lives."**

"It's always you who's waking him up," Piper smiled.

"Yeah, why is that?" Katie smiled.

"Grover was a little preoccupied," Annabeth remembered.

"And because you love me." Percy whispered into her ear so nobody could hear.

**I was trembling from the dream. I could still feel the grip of the chasm monster around my chest. "How long was I asleep?"**

**"Long enough for me to cook breakfast." Annabeth tossed me a bag of nacho-flavored corn chips from Aunty Em's snack bar. "And Grover went exploring. Look, he found a friend."**

"The poodle?" Jason asked.

**My eyes had trouble focusing.**

**Grover was sitting cross-legged on a blanket with something fuzzy in his lap, a dirty, unnaturally pink stuffed animal.**

"It was pink!" Aphrodite shrieked. "It sounds adorable!"

**No. It wasn't a stuffed animal. It was a pink poodle.**

**The poodle yapped at me suspiciously. Grover said, "No, he's not."**

"What'd he ask?" Will asked curiously.

"Not sure, I think he asked if he was a threat or something."

**I blinked. "Are you ... talking to that thing?"**

**The poodle growled.**

"Hold your tongue Perce, or the poodle's going to rip it out," Conner laughed. Percy rolled his eyes.

**"This **_**thing**_**," Grover warned, "is our ticket west. Be nice to him."**

**"You can talk to animals?"**

**Grover ignored the question. "Percy, meet Gladiola. Gladiola, Percy."**

"What kind of name is that?" Leo laughed.

**I stared at Annabeth, figuring she'd crack up at this practical joke they were playing on me, but she looked deadly serious.**

"We didn't have time for jokes," Annabeth said.

"You should have though," Travis said. "I mean, could you imagine, Percy would have gone crazy!"

"I worry about you sometimes," Katie said.

**"I'm not saying hello to a pink poodle," I said. "Forget it."**

**"Percy," Annabeth said. "I said hello to the poodle. You say hello to the poodle."**

**The poodle growled.**

"What's up with that?" Apollo laughed. "Grover has more attitude than Ares."

"I'd wreck the little twerp," Ares growled.

**I said hello to the poodle.**

"Of course you did," Thalia smiled. "Annabeth told you to." Percy galred and splashed his favorite cousin with water.

**Grover explained that he'd come across Gladiola in the woods and they'd struck up a conversation. The poodle had run away from a rich local family, who'd posted a $200 reward for his return. Gladiola didn't really want to go back to his family,** **but he was willing to if it meant helping Grover.**

"That was nice of the animal," Hestia said. "Why did he help you?"

Grover blushed. "I told him it was the end of the world."

"No better way to paralyze someone," Rachel laughed.

**"How does Gladiola know about the reward?" I asked.**

**"He read the signs," Grover said. "Duh."**

**"Of course," I said. "Silly me."**

Everyone laughed at Percy's remark.

**"So we turn in Gladiola," Annabeth explained in her best strategy voice, "we get money, and we buy tickets to Los Angeles. Simple."**

**I thought about my dream—the whispering voices of the dead, the thing in the chasm, and my mother's face, shimmering as it dissolved into gold. All that might be waiting for me in the West.**

**"Not another bus," I said warily.**

**"No," Annabeth agreed.**

"Wow, you guys actually agreed on something," Thalia said.

**She pointed downhill, toward train tracks I hadn't been able to see last night in the dark. "There's an Amtrak station half a mile that way. According to Gladiola, the west bound train leaves at noon."**

* * *

**ENJOY!**


	19. plunging to a death

"**I Plunge to my Death," **Sally read with a quiet voice.

Poseidon shifted uncomfortably while the demigods looked over at Annabeth,Percy, and Grover with questioning looks.

**We spent two days on the Amtrak train, heading west through hills, over rivers, past amber waves of grain.**

**We weren't attacked once, but I didn't relax.**

"And you shouldn't," Zeus grumbled. "You still haven't found my master bolt."

Thalia rolled her eyes. _Gods do I have a lame father._

**I felt that we were traveling around in a display case, being watched from above and maybe from below, that something was waiting for the right opportunity.**

**I tried to keep a low profile because my name and picture were splattered over the front pages of several East Coast newspapers. The **_**Trenton Register-News **_**showed a photo taken by a tourist as I got off the Greyhound bus. I had a wild look in my eyes. My sword was a metallic blur in my hands. It might've been a baseball bat or a lacrosse stick.**

"Seriously," Nico exclaimed. "Who carries around a lacrosse stick and nothing else?"

"He has a point," Apollo said. "I mean, I've done some weird things, but just the stick? Mortals are weird."

**The picture's caption read:**

_**Twelve-year-old Percy Jackson, wanted for questioning in the Long Island disappearance of his mother two weeks ago, is shown here fleeing from the bus where he accosted several elderly female passengers.**_

"I'm speechless," Travis said.

"I know," Thalia agreed. "They're pining everything on him."

Travis shook his head. "Not that, Percy's famous! He's all over the news."

"That's what you got out of that?" Katie asked.

_**The bus exploded on an east New Jersey roadside shortly after Jackson fled the scene. Based on eyewitness accounts, police believe the boy may be traveling with two teenage accomplices. His stepfather, Gabe Ugliano, has offered a cash reward for information leading to his capture.**_

"The mortal makes it sound like he's a wild animal," Demeter noticed.

"Yes," Poseidon agreed. "I say we capture him and ruff him up a bit."

Ares smiled brightly. "I finally agree to something you guys say, please do it!"

"I'm surprised the pig has money," Rachel whispered to Annabeth.

**"Don't worry," Annabeth told me. "Mortal police could never find us." But she didn't sound so sure.**

"I was," She huffed. The others raised their eyebrow at her with an intense gaze. "I wasn't."

**The rest of the day I spent alternately pacing the length of the train (because I had a really hard time sitting still) or looking out the windows.**

**Once, I spotted a family of centaurs galloping across a wheat field, bows at the ready, as they hunted lunch.**

**The little boy centaur, who was the size of a second-grader on a pony, caught my eye and waved. I looked around the passenger car, but nobody else had noticed. The adult riders all had their faces buried in laptop computers or magazines.**

"Does he know him?" Piper asked.

Grover shrugged. "If he does, he never mentioned it."

**Another time, toward evening, I saw something huge moving through the woods. I could've sworn it was a lion, except that lions don't live wild in America, and this thing was the size of a Hummer. Its fur glinted gold in the evening light. Then it leaped through the trees and was gone.**

"Gods he gets to see everything," Travis sighed.

"Do you want to see a giant Hummer sized lion?" Chris asked.

"You bet," Travis answered without hesitation. He snapped his fingers and looked at Chiron. "Hey Chiron, I have another money making idea for camp. A zoo."

"Yeah, and we'll have you as its main attraction," Katie smirked.

The others laughed but Travis smirked back.

"So you think I'm attractive?"

Katie blushed and then glared to shut him up.

**Our reward money for returning Gladiola the poodle had only been enough to purchase tickets as far as Denver. We couldn't get berths in the sleeper car, so we dozed in our seats. My neck got stiff. I tried not to drool in my sleep, since Annabeth was sitting right next to me.**

"Still did," Annabeth smiled. Percy blushec of embarrasment.

"Ah, you guys are too cut together." Aphrodite squeled.

Athena faced palmed. "How much will it take for you to shut up about that?" She asked. "I swear, it's getting annoying."

"I'll stop when Annabeth admits her true feelings."

**Grover kept snoring and bleating and waking me up. **

"I was not!"

"You were." Percy smirked.

**Once, he shuffled around and his fake foot fell off. Annabeth and I had to stick it back on before any of the other passengers noticed.**

**"So," Annabeth asked me, once **_**we'd **_**gotten Grover's sneaker readjusted. "Who wants your help?"**

**"What do you mean?"**

**"When you were asleep just now, you mumbled, 'I won't help you.' Who were you dreaming about?"**

"Well it wasn't you," Aphrodite said.

"Why's that?" Demeter asked.

"Because he'd do anything for Annabeth," Aphrodite gushed.

"Gods I'm going to puke," Leo said. Percy and Annabeth blushed. Percy went outside and claimed he needed a break. Nobody noticed when Annabeth turned invisible and left.

**I was reluctant to say anything. It was the second time I'd dreamed about the evil voice from the pit.**

**But it bothered me so much I finally told her.**

**Annabeth was quiet for a long time. "That doesn't sound like Hades. He always appears on a black throne, and he never laughs."**

"Because you have no sense of humor," Hermes said.

"I think we have more important things to discuss," Athena pointed out. "If the voice wasn't Hades, then are darkest fears are coming true."

"Enough Athena," Zeus snapped. "We don't know for sure."

_Fine. _Athena thought. _Let your stubbornness blind you!_

**"He offered my mother in trade. Who else could do that?"**

"He has a point," Hephaestus said. "Hades can only do that."

**"I guess ... if he meant, 'Help me rise from the Underworld.' If he wants war with the Olympians. But why ask you to bring him the master bolt if he already has it?"**

"The girl sees sense." Hades said. Hades had felt it when Annabeth turned invisible.

"Oh be quiet," Demeter snapped. "You denied nothing about war with the rest of us."

**I shook my head, wishing I knew the answer. I thought about what Grover had told me, that the Furies on the bus seemed to have been looking for something.**

_**Where is it? Where?**_

**Maybe Grover sensed my emotions. He snorted in his sleep, muttered something about vegetables, and turned his head.**

**Annabeth readjusted his cap so it covered his horns. "Percy, you can't barter with Hades. You know that, right? He's deceitful, heartless, and greedy.**

"I take back that thank you," Hades grumbled as everyone laughed.

"The girl sees sense," Artemis taunted Hades.

"Kind of reminds me of someone," Conner whispered to Travis while they looked a Nico.

**I don't care if his Kindly Ones weren't as aggressive this time—"**

**"This time?" I asked. "You mean you've run into them before?"**

Athena frowned at Hades and then went to look at Annabeth with concern, but what she saw was empty space.

"Where is Annabeth?" Athena yelled.

**Her hand crept up to her necklace. She fingered a glazed white bead painted with the image of a pine tree, one of her clay end-of-summer tokens. "Let's just say I've got no love for the Lord of the Dead. You can't be tempted to make a deal for your mom."**

"Someone's unloved," Demeter smiled. "What else is new?"

"Well I don't see you having a husband around," Hades shot back.

"Well at least I didn't kidnap my wife!"

Hades smirked. "So you like girls?"

"AH," She screamed. "It's like talking to a wall and expecting answers."

"You'd have a better conversation with the wall," Artemis whispered.

**"What would you do if it was your dad?"**

**"That's easy," she said. "I'd leave him to rot."**

"That's a terrible thing to say," Hera said. "You might not be close, but he's still your father."

"You threw your son off Olympus," Piper said.

"She has a point," Hephaestus said.

"He's a god, I knew he wouldn't die," Hera said.

"So not the point," Piper glared.

**"You're not serious?"**

**Annabeth's gray eyes fixed on me. She wore the same expression she'd worn in the woods at camp, the moment she drew her sword against the hellhound. "My dad's resented me since the day I was born, Percy," she said. "He never wanted a baby. When he got me, he asked Athena to take me back and raise me on Olympus because he was too busy with his work. She wasn't happy about that. She told him heroes had to be raised by their mortal parent."**

"Which they should," Athena said.

"Well then maybe you shouldn't have had a child with him," Artemis said. "I mean, surely you would have known if he was capable."

"He was, he just didn't know it," Athena said.

**"But how ... I mean, I guess you weren't born in a hospital..."**

**"I appeared on my father's doorstep, in a golden cradle, carried down from Olympus by Zephyr the West Wind. You'd think my dad would remember that as a miracle, right? Like, maybe he'd take some digital photos or some thing. But he always talked about my arrival as if it were the most inconvenient thing that had ever happened to him. When I was five he got married and totally forgot about Athena. He got a 'regular' mortal wife, and had two 'regular' mortal kids, and tried to pretend I didn't exist."**

"Okay, I see your point, but it's not like he should stay hung up for your mom," Nico said. "I mean, she's a goddess, he can't pine over her for the rest of his life."

Thalia stared amazed. "That's like the most intelligent thing you've ever said."

"I'll ignore that insult," Nico away from Thalia.

**I stared out the train window. The lights of a sleeping town were drifting by. I wanted to make Annabeth feel better, but I didn't know how.**

Annabeth smiled and surprisingly, Athena smiled at Percy (Percy and Annabeth came back when they heard Athena screaming.) who had ANnabeth in his lap.

"He' so freaking cute," Aphrodite gushed. She looked over at Percy and beamed when he blushed into Annabeth's hair.

Aphrodite quickly walked over, took BabyPercy(she didn't want to take Percy), and planted a kiss on his cheek, which earned a deep blush and glare from Annabeth, and then sat back in her seat.

"You're such a gentleman," She cooed at him. "Can you teach Ares?"

"What's that supposed to mean," Ares glared. "Maybe if you didn't whine all the time, I would be."

Aphrodite's smiled disappeared and turned into a frown which turned into tears. Piper glared at the God of War for making her mother cry, and Athena was about to yell at her half brother but someone beat her.

Baby Percy, who had been staring at Aphrodite with a little smile as she talked to him, noticed her tears and then felt the God of Wars presence around him. He turned to him and noticed his hard glare at Aphrodite, and with a small tug in his gut, water from a nearby fountain smacked Ares off his throne and face first into Baby Percy's play pool.

The hippocampi, which had been sleeping quietly under water, felt Ares smash into the water, and on a defensive reaction, spun its tail straight into Ares's face with a loud smack.

The demigods laughed as the God pulled himself out of the water and glared at the hippocampi and then glared at Baby Percy.

"My hero," Aphrodite hugged Baby Percy tight. She turned to Ares. "As for you, you're an ass, and we're finished until I see some serious changes."

"Even as a bayb I'm awesome." Percy laughed.

**"My mom married a really awful guy," I told her.** **"Grover said she did it to protect me, to hide me in the scent of a human family. Maybe that's what your dad was thinking."**

Annabeth smiled at Percy's words.

**Annabeth kept worrying at her necklace. She was pinching the gold college ring that hung with the beads. It occurred to me that the ring must be her father's. I wondered why she wore it if she hated him so much.**

**"He doesn't care about me," she said. "His wife—my stepmom—treated me like a freak. She wouldn't let me play with her children. My dad went along with her. Whenever something dangerous happened—you know, something with monsters—they would both look at me resentfully, like, 'How dare you put our family at risk.' Finally, I took the hint. I wasn't wanted. I ran away."**

'I'm sorry Annabeth, I had no clue," Athena said quietly.

"It's okay," She said quietly. "You didn't know, this has happened yet."

**"How old were you?"**

**"Same age as when I started camp. Seven."**

**"But ... you couldn't have gotten all the way to Half-Blood Hill by yourself."**

**"Not alone, no. Athena watched over me, guided me toward help. **

"See," Annabeth smiled at her. "You helped."

**I made a couple of unexpected friends who took care of me, for a short time, anyway."**

Thalia and Grover smiled at Annabeth. But then frowned as they remebebred Luke.

**I wanted to ask what happened, but Annabeth seemed lost in sad memories. So I listened to the sound of Grover snoring and gazed out the train windows as the dark fields of Ohio raced by.**

**Toward the end of our second day on the train, June 13, eight days before the summer solstice, we passed through some golden hills and over the Mississippi River into St. Louis. Annabeth craned her neck to see the Gateway Arch, which looked to me like a huge shopping bag handle stuck on the city.**

"It's amazing," Annabeth said with a gleam in her eyes.

"A shopping bag?" Leo asked.

"No you idiot, the arch.!"

**"I want to do that," she sighed.**

**"What?" I asked.**

**"Build something like that. You ever see the Parthenon, Percy?"**

"He's never been on a plane," Conner said.

"Good point," Annabeth said quietly. Percy laughed quitely when he remebered the one time he was on a plane.

**"Only in pictures."**

**"Someday, I'm going to see it in person. I'm going to build the greatest monument to the gods, ever. Something that'll last a thousand years."**

Most of the gods smiled at Annabeth's enthusiasm. Athena beamed at her daughter and was about to tell her how proud she was, but was cut off by Poseidon.

"You could build me something for my palace if you'd like," Poseidon offered.

Annabeth blushed, while Athena stared suspiciously at him

_What's he trying to pull? _She thought. Percy shot his father a you are the best look.

**I laughed. "You? An architect?"**

"Well at least he believes in you," Thalia snickered.

**I don't know why, but I found it funny. Just the idea of Annabeth trying to sit quietly and draw all day.**

**Her cheeks flushed. **

"Nervous that Percy won't like your ambition," Aphrodite wiggled her eyebrow.

"Of course I love the fact that she wants to be an architect. It's perfect for her because she gets to boss people around." Percy smiled at Annabeth.

**"Yes, an architect. Athena expects her children to create things, not just tear them down, like a certain god of earthquakes I could mention."**

Annabeth looked sympathetically at Poseidon. "I'm sorry Lord Poseidon."

Poseidon waved it off, a little ashamed that people thought of him like that.

Percy pulled Annabeth closer to him.

**I watched the churning brown water of the Mississippi below.**

**"Sorry," Annabeth said. "That was mean."**

"It was," Rachel said.

**"Can't we work together a little?" I pleaded. "I mean, didn't Athena and Poseidon ever cooperate?"**

The two gods eyed each other, and the others in the room stared on waiting to see which bomb went off first.

**Annabeth had to think about it. "I guess ... the chariot," she said tentatively. "My mom invented it, but Poseidon created horses out of the crests of waves. So they had to work together to make it complete."**

"It was an incredible invention," Athena said finally. She noticed Poseidon's smirk and then glared at him. "But I've done better."

"Sure you have," He smiled.

**"Then we can cooperate, too. Right?"**

**We rode into the city, Annabeth watching as the Arch disappeared behind a hotel.**

**"I suppose," she said at last.**

"The start of an era," Travis announced dramatically.

"But they would always end up fighting." Connor and Nico laughed.

**We pulled into the Amtrak station downtown. The intercom told us we'd have a three-hour layover before departing for Denver.**

**Grover stretched. Before he was even fully awake, he said, "Food."**

**"Come on, goat boy," Annabeth said. "Sightseeing."**

"So you have time to sightsee?" Thalia asked skeptically.

"Hey, if it was the end of the world, then I had to see the arch before it was destroyed," Annabeth said.

**"Sightseeing?"**

**"The Gateway Arch," she said. "This may be my only chance to ride to the top. Are you coming or not?"**

**Grover and I exchanged looks.**

**I wanted to say no, but I figured that if Annabeth was going, we couldn't very well let her go alone.**

At a glare from Athena, Aphrodite quickly backed down and continued her fashion conversation with Percy.

**Grover shrugged. "As long as there's a snack bar without monsters."**

"I like the way Grover thinks," Apollo smiled. "He's always hungry."

Grover blushed and Artemis rolled her eyes.

"And you always say something stupid."

**The Arch was about a mile from the train station. Late in the day the lines to get in weren't that long. We threaded our way through the underground museum, looking at covered wagons and other junk from the 1800s. It wasn't all that thrilling, but Annabeth kept telling us interesting facts about how the Arch was built, and Grover kept passing me jelly beans, so I was okay.**

**I kept looking around, though, at the other people in line. "You smell anything?" I murmured to Grover.**

"It's like you're a dog," Travis laughed.

**He took his nose out of the jelly-bean bag long enough to sniff. "Underground," he said distastefully. "Under ground air always smells like monsters. Probably doesn't mean anything."**

**But something felt wrong to me. I had a feeling we shouldn't be here.**

**"Guys," I said. "You know the gods' symbols of power?"**

**Annabeth had been in the middle of reading about the construction equipment used to build the Arch, but she looked over. "Yeah?"**

"Why would they care about the equipment?" Nico asked.

**"Well, Hade—"**

**Grover cleared his throat. "We're in a public place... You mean, our friend downstairs?"**

"That sounds dirty," Conner smirked.

"You sound like an idiot," Katie shot back.

"You sound hot," He retaliated.

Travis glared while Katie blushed.

**"Um, right," I said. "Our friend **_**way **_**downstairs. Doesn't he have a hat like Annabeth's?"**

Hades gripped his helm of darkness.

**"You mean the Helm of Darkness," Annabeth said. "Yeah, that's his symbol of power. I saw it next to his seat during the winter solstice council meeting."**

**"He was there?" I asked.**

**She nodded. "It's the only time he's allowed to visit Olympus—the darkest day of the year. But his helm is a lot more powerful than my invisibility hat, **

"Damn right it is."

**if what I've heard is true..."**

**"It allows him to become darkness," Grover confirmed. "He can melt into shadow or pass through walls. He can't be touched, or seen, or heard. And he can radiate fear so intense it can drive you insane or stop your heart. Why do you think all rational creatures fear the dark?"**

"That's intense," Nico awed.

Hades smiled smugly at his son's reaction and the others rolled their eyes.

"My bolt still destroys your helm of darkness," Zeus shot at him.

"Yeah right," Hades said.

"You're both idiots," Poseidon said. The gods groaned, thinking that all three were going to fight now. "We're in the middle of a book and you're fighting over something that is impossible to determine."

The brothers gawked and Athena had a small smile at Poseidon's statement.

_Perhaps there's hope for you yet fish face. _She thought.

**"But then ... how do we know he's not here right now, watching us?" I asked.**

"Because I have better things to do."

**Annabeth and Grover exchanged looks.**

**"We don't," Grover said.**

**"Thanks, that makes me feel a lot better," I said. "Got any blue jelly beans left?"**

**I'd almost mastered my jumpy nerves when I saw the tiny little elevator car we were going to ride to the top of the Arch, and I knew I was in trouble. I hate confined places. They make me nuts.**

"ADHD," The demigods said.

**We got shoehorned into the car with this big fat lady and her dog, a Chihuahua with a rhinestone collar. I figured maybe the dog was a seeing-eye Chihuahua, because none of the guards said a word about it.**

"I prefer poodles," Aphrodite shot out.

**We started going up, inside the Arch. I'd never been in an elevator that went in a curve, and my stomach wasn't too happy about it.**

**"No parents?" the fat lady asked us.**

"Random."

**She had beady eyes; pointy, coffee-stained teeth; a floppy denim hat, and a denim dress that bulged so much, she looked like a blue-jean blimp.**

**"They're below," Annabeth told her. "Scared of heights."**

"Now that's a lie," Travis said. He turned to Annabeth. "You're quite the woman," He said in a British accent.

"Get your own Stoll. Stay away from her." Percy growled.

"Sorry, I don't date idiots," Annabeth shot back.

"She dates Percy," Thalia whispered.

"HEY!" shouted Percy.

**"Oh, the poor darlings."**

**The Chihuahua growled. The woman said, "Now, now, sonny. Behave." The dog had beady eyes like its owner, intelligent and vicious.**

"You guys have horrible luck with dogs," Jason noticed.

**I said, "Sonny. Is that his name?"**

**"No," the lady told me.**

**She smiled, as if that cleared everything up.**

**At the top of the Arch, the observation deck reminded me of a tin can with carpeting. Rows of tiny windows looked out over the city on one side and the river on the other. The view was okay, but if there's anything I like less than a confined space, it's a confined space six hundred feet in the air. I was ready to go pretty quick.**

_I'd die. _Thalia thought.

**Annabeth kept talking about structural supports, and how she would've made the windows bigger, and designed a see-through floor.**

"That'd be awesome," The Stolls said.

**She probably could've stayed up there for hours, but luckily for me the park ranger announced that the observation deck would be closing in a few minutes.**

**I steered Grover and Annabeth toward the exit, loaded them into the elevator, and I was about to get in myself when I realized there were already two other tourists inside. No room for me.**

"Great," Poseidon said.

**The park ranger said, "Next car, sir."**

**"We'll get out," Annabeth said. "We'll wait with you."**

**"**Please tell me he doesn't." Thalia said.

**But that was going to mess everybody up and take even more time, so I said, "Naw, it's okay. I'll see you guys at the bottom."**

"Of course he did," Thalia shook her head.

**Grover and Annabeth both looked nervous, but they let the elevator door slide shut. Their car disappeared down the ramp.**

**Now the only people left on the observation deck were me, a little boy with his parents, the park ranger, and the fat lady with her Chihuahua.**

"I'm guessing something is going to happen with the Chihuahua?" Jason asked.

Percy shivered as he remebered what happened.

**I smiled uneasily at the fat lady. She smiled back, her forked tongue flickering between her teeth.**

"Forked tongue?" Most said.

**Wait a minute.**

**Forked tongue?**

**Before I could decide if I'd really seen that, her Chihuahua jumped down and started yapping at me.**

"I'd kick it," Clarisse smiled, as if picturing it.

**"Now, now, sonny," the lady said. "Does this look like a good time? We have all these nice people here."**

**"Doggie!" said the little boy. "Look, a doggie!"**

**His parents pulled him back.**

**The Chihuahua bared his teeth at me, foam dripping from his black lips.**

**"Well, son," the fat lady sighed. "If you insist."**

**Ice started forming in my stomach. "Urn, did you just call that Chihuahua your son?"**

"So she's crazy," Travis decided.

_**"Chimera, **_**dear," the fat lady corrected. "Not a Chihuahua. It's an easy mistake to make."**

Poseidon paled, just like the demigods.

**She rolled up her denim sleeves, revealing that the skin of her arms was scaly and green. When she smiled, I saw that her teeth were fangs. The pupils of her eyes were side ways slits, like a reptile's.**

**The Chihuahua barked louder, and with each bark, it grew. First to the size of a Doberman, then to a lion. The bark became a roar.**

**The little boy screamed. His parents pulled him back toward the exit, straight into the park ranger, who stood, paralyzed, gaping at the monster.**

"They saw it?" Piper asked.

"Yeah." Percy replied. Annabeth sat closer to Percy scared for his life even though she knew he was safe.

**The Chimera was now so tall its back rubbed against the roof. It had the head of a lion with a blood-caked mane, the body and hooves of a giant goat, and a serpent for a tail, a ten-foot-long diamondback growing right out of its shaggy behind. The rhinestone dog collar still hung around its neck, and the plate-sized dog tag was now easy to read: CHIMERA—RABID, FIRE-BREATHING, POISONOUS—IF FOUND, PLEASE CALL TARTARUS—EXT. 954.**

"I'd laugh if I wasn't a little worried for Perce," Conner said.

**I realized I hadn't even uncapped my sword. My hands were numb. I was ten feet away from the Chimera's bloody maw, and I knew that as soon as I moved, the creature would lunge.**

**The snake lady made a hissing noise that might've been laughter. "Be honored, Percy Jackson. Lord Zeus rarely allows me to test a hero with one of my brood. For I am the Mother of Monsters, the terrible Echidna!"**

"You sent her!" Thalia screamed at her dad.

Jason too stared at his dad with disappointment. He'd hate it if Poseidon would send a terrible sea creature after him.

Poseidon glared hard at Zeus but said nothing.

"Well how was I supposed to know," Zeus defended himself."

"Logic father," Athena answered and defended Percy's friends. "If you just watched the boy you would know that he doesn't have your bolt."

**I stared at her. All I could think to say was: "Isn't that a kind of anteater?"**

"Not the brightest thing to say," Will said slowly.

"I learned that the hard way." Percy said.

**She howled, her reptilian face turning brown and green with rage. "I hate it when people say that! I hate Australia! Naming that ridiculous animal after me. For that, Percy Jackson, my son shall destroy you!"**

"You're lucky I'm not there!" Poseidon roared.

**The Chimera charged, its lion teeth gnashing. I managed to leap aside and dodge the bite.**

**I ended up next to the family and the park ranger, who were all screaming now, trying to pry open the emergency exit doors.**

**I couldn't let them get hurt. **

Everyone smiled at Percy's will to protect the others.

**I uncapped my sword, ran to the other side of the deck, and yelled, "Hey, Chihuahua!" The Chimera turned faster than I would've thought possible.**

"He's getting real good at pissing off the wrong people," Chris noticed.

_Let's hope it doesn't kill him. _Annabeth thought even though he was right next to her.

**Before I could swing my sword, it opened its mouth, emitting a stench like the world's largest barbecue pit, and shot a column of flame straight at me.**

**I dove through the explosion. The carpet burst into flames; the heat was so intense, it nearly seared off my eye brows.**

"I wonder what would happen to you if it hit you," Jason asked Leo.

Leo shrugged. "We'll test it out when we get home."

**Where I had been standing a moment before was a ragged hole in the side of the Arch, with melted metal steaming around the edges.**

**Great, I thought. We just blowtorched a national monument.**

**Riptide was now a shining bronze blade in my hands, and as the Chimera turned, I slashed at its neck.**

**That was my fatal mistake. The blade sparked harmlessly off the dog collar. I tried to regain my balance, but I was so worried about defending myself against the fiery lion's mouth, I completely forgot about the serpent tail until it whipped around and sank its fangs into my calf.**

"NO," Poseidon yelled, and even Sally stopped reading to scream.

The demigods all had grim faces and were all silently thinking how he got out of this one.

Bbay Percy, who was oblivious to all of the tension, was playing with a curled lock on Aphrodite's hair. He'd pull it down and watch it jump up and hit him straight in the face softly.

His laughter seemed to break the trance as Sally continued to read.

**My whole leg was on fire. I tried to jab Riptide into the Chimera's mouth, but the serpent tail wrapped around my ankles and pulled me off balance, and my blade flew out of my hand, spinning out of the hole in the Arch and down toward the Mississippi River.**

**I managed to get to my feet, but I knew I had lost. I was weaponless. I could feel deadly poison racing up to my chest. I remembered Chiron saying that Anaklusmos would always return to me, but there was no pen in my pocket. Maybe it had fallen too far away. Maybe it only returned when it was in pen form. I didn't know, and I wasn't going to live long enough to figure it out.**

"It took time, "Chiron said sadly. He hated hearing about Percy when he was in pain.

**I backed into the hole in the wall. The Chimera advanced, growling, smoke curling from its lips. The snake lady, Echidna, cackled. "They don't make heroes like they used to, eh, son?"**

"Shut your trap," Annabeth yelled. "He's more of a hero then you've ever seen."

Athena was too engrossed in the book, and a little worried for Percy, who's younger self had unfortunately grown on her, to frown at Annabeth's compassion for him.

Percy pulled her closer and whispered to her that everything was okay.

**The monster growled. It seemed in no hurry to finish me off now that I was beaten.**

**I glanced at the park ranger and the family. The little boy was hiding behind his father's legs. I had to protect these people. I couldn't just ... die.**

"Heart of gold hero," Hestia smiled. She turned to Zeus. "Do you see your mistake brother? How can a thief be so compassionate yet want to steal your master bolt and start a war."

Zeus turned away. He couldn't stand to see Hestia's sad eyes.

**I tried to think, but my whole body was on fire. My head felt dizzy. I had no sword. I was facing a massive, fire-breathing monster and its mother. And I was scared.**

From a look from Chris, Clarisse kept her mouth closed.

**There was no place else to go, so I stepped to the edge of the hole. Far, far below, the river glittered.**

Poseidon's eyes widened. _Jump Percy, please jump!_

**If I died, would the monsters go away? Would they leave the humans alone?**

"Don't think like that," Annabeth said sadly. "I hate it when you think like that."

Thalia threw her arm around her friend and cousin. Although they knew Percy was okay, they couldn't help but worry.

"Can't breathe." Percy gasped. Between Annabeth and Thalia hugging him, Percy couldn't breathe.

**"If you are the son of Poseidon," Echidna hissed, "you would not fear water. Jump, Percy Jackson. Show me that water will not harm you. Jump and retrieve your sword. Prove your bloodline."**

"Is she taunting him?" Leo asked.

Everyone shrugged.

**Yeah, right, I thought. I'd read somewhere that jumping into water from a couple of stories up was like jumping onto solid asphalt. From here, I'd splatter on impact.**

"He's right," Athena said quietly.

**The Chimera's mouth glowed red, heating up for an other blast.**

**"You have no faith," Echidna told me. "You do not trust the gods. I cannot blame you, little coward. Better you die now. The gods are faithless. The poison is in your heart."**

"She speaks so highly of you," Hera snapped at Zeus.

"He isn't a coward!" Nico shouted.

**She was right: I was dying. I could feel my breath slowing down. Nobody could save me, not even the gods.**

"I could," Apollo said. "I would have if I had known."

Artemis, a little shocked, smiled that went unnoticed by everyone at Apollo.

**I backed up and looked down at the water. I remembered the warm glow of my father's smile when I was a baby. He must have seen me. He must have visited me when I was in my cradle.**

"I did Percy, and I still do," Poseidon smiled.

**I remembered the swirling green trident that had appeared above my head the night of capture the flag, when Poseidon had claimed me as his son.**

**But this wasn't the sea. This was the Mississippi, dead center of the USA. There was no Sea God here.**

"I'm always there Percy, always," He said quietly. Percy smiled at how caring his father was.

**"Die, faithless one," Echidna rasped, and the Chimera sent a column of flame toward my face.**

**"Father, help me," I prayed.**

"Please, just jump," Poseidon encouraged.

"He'll die," Athena said.

**I turned and jumped. My clothes on fire, poison coursing through my veins, I plummeted toward the river.**

"**I Plunge to my Death," **She read with a quiet voice.

Poseidon shifted uncomfortably while the demigods looked over at Annabeth and Grover with questioning looks.

**We spent two days on the Amtrak train, heading west through hills, over rivers, past amber waves of grain.**

**We weren't attacked once, but I didn't relax.**

"And you shouldn't," Zeus grumbled. "You still haven't found my master bolt."

Thalia rolled her eyes. _Gods do I have a lame father._

**I felt that we were traveling around in a display case, being watched from above and maybe from below, that something was waiting for the right opportunity.**

**I tried to keep a low profile because my name and picture were splattered over the front pages of several East Coast newspapers. The **_**Trenton Register-News **_**showed a photo taken by a tourist as I got off the Greyhound bus. I had a wild look in my eyes. My sword was a metallic blur in my hands. It might've been a baseball bat or a lacrosse stick.**

"Seriously," Nico exclaimed. "Who carries around a lacrosse stick and nothing else?"

"He has a point," Apollo said. "I mean, I've done some weird things, but just the stick? Mortals are weird."

**The picture's caption read:**

_**Twelve-year-old Percy Jackson, wanted for questioning in the Long Island disappearance of his mother two weeks ago, is shown here fleeing from the bus where he accosted several elderly female passengers.**_

"I'm speechless," Travis said.

"I know," Thalia agreed. "They're pining everything on him."

Travis shook his head. "Not that, Percy's famous! He's all over the news."

"That's what you got out of that?" Katie asked.

_**The bus exploded on an east New Jersey roadside shortly after Jackson fled the scene. Based on eyewitness accounts, police believe the boy may be traveling with two teenage accomplices. His stepfather, Gabe Ugliano, has offered a cash reward for information leading to his capture.**_

"The mortal makes it sound like he's a wild animal," Demeter noticed.

"Yes," Poseidon agreed. "I say we capture him and ruff him up a bit."

Ares smiled brightly. "I finally agree to something you guys say, please do it!"

"I'm surprised the pig has money," Rachel whispered to Annabeth.

**"Don't worry," Annabeth told me. "Mortal police could never find us." But she didn't sound so sure.**

"I was," She huffed. The others raised their eyebrow at her with an intense gaze. "I wasn't."

**The rest of the day I spent alternately pacing the length of the train (because I had a really hard time sitting still) or looking out the windows.**

**Once, I spotted a family of centaurs galloping across a wheat field, bows at the ready, as they hunted lunch.**

**The little boy centaur, who was the size of a second-grader on a pony, caught my eye and waved. I looked around the passenger car, but nobody else had noticed. The adult riders all had their faces buried in laptop computers or magazines.**

"Does he know him?" Piper asked.

Grover shrugged. "If he does, he never mentioned it."

**Another time, toward evening, I saw something huge moving through the woods. I could've sworn it was a lion, except that lions don't live wild in America, and this thing was the size of a Hummer. Its fur glinted gold in the evening light. Then it leaped through the trees and was gone.**

"Gods he gets to see everything," Travis sighed.

"Do you want to see a giant Hummer sized lion?" Chris asked.

"You bet," Travis answered without hesitation. He snapped his fingers and looked at Chiron. "Hey Chiron, I have another money making idea for camp. A zoo."

"Yeah, and will have you as its main attraction," Katie smirked.

The others laughed but Travis smirked back.

"So you think I'm attractive?"

Katie blushed and then glared to shut him up.

**Our reward money for returning Gladiola the poodle had only been enough to purchase tickets as far as Denver. We couldn't get berths in the sleeper car, so we dozed in our seats. My neck got stiff. I tried not to drool in my sleep, since Annabeth was sitting right next to me.**

"Still did," Annabeth smiled.

"Ah, he's so cute," Aphrodite shrieked. "He's trying to be better just for you."

Athena faced palmed. "How much will it take for you to shut up about that?" She asked. "I swear, it's getting annoying."

"I'll stop when Annabeth admits her true feelings."

**Grover kept snoring and bleating and waking me up. **

"I was not!"

"You were."

**Once, he shuffled around and his fake foot fell off. Annabeth and I had to stick it back on before any of the other passengers noticed.**

**"So," Annabeth asked me, once **_**we'd **_**gotten Grover's sneaker readjusted. "Who wants your help?"**

**"What do you mean?"**

**"When you were asleep just now, you mumbled, 'I won't help you.' Who were you dreaming about?"**

"Well it wasn't you," Aphrodite said.

"Why's that?" Demeter asked.

"Because he'd do anything for Annabeth," Aphrodite gushed.

"Gods I'm going to puke," Leo said.

**I was reluctant to say anything. It was the second time I'd dreamed about the evil voice from the pit.**

**But it bothered me so much I finally told her.**

**Annabeth was quiet for a long time. "That doesn't sound like Hades. He always appears on a black throne, and he never laughs."**

"Because you have no sense of humor," Hermes said.

"I think we have more important things to discuss," Athena pointed out. "If the voice wasn't Hades, then are darkest fears are coming true."

"Enough Athena," Zeus snapped. "We don't know for sure."

_Fine. _Athena thought. _Let your stubbornness blind you!_

**"He offered my mother in trade. Who else could do that?"**

"He has a point," Hephaestus said. "Hades can only do that."

**"I guess ... if he meant, 'Help me rise from the Underworld.' If he wants war with the Olympians. But why ask you to bring him the master bolt if he already has it?"**

"Thank you," Hades said to Annabeth. "The girl sees sense."

"Oh be quiet," Demeter snapped. "You denied nothing about war with the rest of us."

**I shook my head, wishing I knew the answer. I thought about what Grover had told me, that the Furies on the bus seemed to have been looking for something.**

_**Where is it? Where?**_

**Maybe Grover sensed my emotions. He snorted in his sleep, muttered something about vegetables, and turned his head.**

**Annabeth readjusted his cap so it covered his horns. "Percy, you can't barter with Hades. You know that, right? He's deceitful, heartless, and greedy.**

"I take back that thank you," Hades grumbled as everyone laughed.

"The girl sees sense," Artemis taunted Hades.

"Kind of reminds me of someone," Conner whispered to Travis while they looked a Nico.

**I don't care if his Kindly Ones weren't as aggressive this time—"**

**"This time?" I asked. "You mean you've run into them before?"**

Athena frowned at Hades and then looked at Annabeth with concern.

**Her hand crept up to her necklace. She fingered a glazed white bead painted with the image of a pine tree, one of her clay end-of-summer tokens. "Let's just say I've got no love for the Lord of the Dead. You can't be tempted to make a deal for your mom."**

"Someone's unloved," Demeter smiled. "What else is new?"

"Well I don't see you having a husband around," Hades shot back.

"Well at least I didn't kidnap my wife!"

Hades smirked. "So you like girls?"

"AH," She screamed. "It's like talking to a wall and expecting answers."

"You'd have a better conversation with the wall," Artemis whispered.

**"What would you do if it was your dad?"**

**"That's easy," she said. "I'd leave him to rot."**

"That's a terrible thing to say," Hera said. "You might not be close, but he's still your father."

"You threw your son off Olympus," Annabeth shot back.

"She has a point," Hephaestus said.

"He's a god, I knew he wouldn't die," Hera said.

"So not the point," Annabeth glared.

**"You're not serious?"**

**Annabeth's gray eyes fixed on me. She wore the same expression she'd worn in the woods at camp, the moment she drew her sword against the hellhound. "My dad's resented me since the day I was born, Percy," she said. "He never wanted a baby. When he got me, he asked Athena to take me back and raise me on Olympus because he was too busy with his work. She wasn't happy about that. She told him heroes had to be raised by their mortal parent."**

"Which they should," Athena said.

"Well then maybe you shouldn't have had a child with him," Artemis said. "I mean, surely you would have known if he was capable."

"He was, he just didn't know it," Athena said.

**"But how ... I mean, I guess you weren't born in a hospital..."**

**"I appeared on my father's doorstep, in a golden cradle, carried down from Olympus by Zephyr the West Wind. You'd think my dad would remember that as a miracle, right? Like, maybe he'd take some digital photos or some thing. But he always talked about my arrival as if it were the most inconvenient thing that had ever happened to him. When I was five he got married and totally forgot about Athena. He got a 'regular' mortal wife, and had two 'regular' mortal kids, and tried to pretend I didn't exist."**

"Okay, I see your point, but it's not like he should stay hung up for your mom," Nico said. "I mean, she's a goddess, he can't pine over her for the rest of his life."

Thalia stared amazed. "That's like the most intelligent thing you've ever said."

"I'll ignore that insult," Nico away from Thalia.

**I stared out the train window. The lights of a sleeping town were drifting by. I wanted to make Annabeth feel better, but I didn't know how.**

Annabeth smiled and surprisingly, Athena smiled to the little boy who was still perched on Poseidon's lap.

"He' so freaking cute," Aphrodite gushed. She looked over at Percy and beamed when he waved at her. "Oh gods, come here you."

Aphrodite quickly walked over, took Percy, and planted a kiss on his cheek, which earned a deep blush and glare from Annabeth, and then sat back in her seat.

"You're such a gentlemen," She cooed at him. "Can you teach Ares?"

"What's that supposed to mean," Ares glared. "Maybe if you didn't whine all the time, I would be."

Aphrodite's smiled disappeared and turned into a frown which turned into tears. Piper glared at the God of War for making her mother cry, and Athena was about to yell at her half brother but someone beat her.

Percy, who had been staring at Aphrodite with a little smile as she talked to him, noticed her tears and then felt the God of Wars presence around him. He turned to him and noticed his hard glare at Aphrodite, and with a small tug in his gut, water from a nearby fountain smacked Ares off his throne and face first into Percy's play pool.

The hippocampi, which had been sleeping quietly under water, felt Ares smash into the water, and on a defensive reaction, spun its tail straight into Ares's face with a loud smack.

The demigods laughed as the God pulled himself out of the water and glared at the hippocampi and then glared at Percy.

"My hero," Aphrodite hugged Percy tight. She turned to Ares. "As for you, you're an ass, and we're finished until I see some serious changes."

"I think you have some competition," Will whispered to Annabeth.

Annabeth glared at him.

**"My mom married a really awful guy," I told her.** **"Grover said she did it to protect me, to hide me in the scent of a human family. Maybe that's what your dad was thinking."**

Annabeth smiled at Percy's words.

**Annabeth kept worrying at her necklace. She was pinching the gold college ring that hung with the beads. It occurred to me that the ring must be her father's. I wondered why she wore it if she hated him so much.**

**"He doesn't care about me," she said. "His wife—my stepmom—treated me like a freak. She wouldn't let me play with her children. My dad went along with her. Whenever something dangerous happened—you know, something with monsters—they would both look at me resentfully, like, 'How dare you put our family at risk.' Finally, I took the hint. I wasn't wanted. I ran away."**

'I'm sorry Annabeth, I had no clue," Athena said quietly.

"It's okay," She said quietly. "You didn't know, this has happened yet."

**"How old were you?"**

**"Same age as when I started camp. Seven."**

**"But ... you couldn't have gotten all the way to Half-Blood Hill by yourself."**

**"Not alone, no. Athena watched over me, guided me toward help. **

"See," Annabeth smiled at her. "You helped."

**I made a couple of unexpected friends who took care of me, for a short time, anyway."**

Thalia and Grover smiled at Annabeth.

**I wanted to ask what happened, but Annabeth seemed lost in sad memories. So I listened to the sound of Grover snoring and gazed out the train windows as the dark fields of Ohio raced by.**

**Toward the end of our second day on the train, June 13, eight days before the summer solstice, we passed through some golden hills and over the Mississippi River into St. Louis. Annabeth craned her neck to see the Gateway Arch, which looked to me like a huge shopping bag handle stuck on the city.**

"It's amazing," Annabeth said with a gleam in her eyes.

"A shopping bag?" Leo asked.

"No you idiot, the arch.!"

**"I want to do that," she sighed.**

**"What?" I asked.**

**"Build something like that. You ever see the Parthenon, Percy?"**

"He's never been on a plane," Conner said.

"Good point," Annabeth said quietly.

**"Only in pictures."**

**"Someday, I'm going to see it in person. I'm going to build the greatest monument to the gods, ever. Something that'll last a thousand years."**

Most of the gods smiled at Annabeth's enthusiasm. Athena beamed at her daughter and was about to tell her how proud she was, but was cut off by Poseidon.

"You could build me something for my palace if you'd like," Poseidon offered.

Annabeth blushed, while Athena stared suspiciously at him

_What's he trying to pull? _She thought.

**I laughed. "You? An architect?"**

"Well at least he believes in you," Thalia snickered/

**I don't know why, but I found it funny. Just the idea of Annabeth trying to sit quietly and draw all day.**

**Her cheeks flushed. **

"Nervous that Percy won't like your ambition," Aphrodite wiggled her eyebrow.

**"Yes, an architect. Athena expects her children to create things, not just tear them down, like a certain god of earthquakes I could mention."**

Annabeth looked sympathetically at Poseidon. "I'm sorry Lord Poseidon."

Poseidon waved it off, a little ashamed that people thought of him like that.

**I watched the churning brown water of the Mississippi below.**

**"Sorry," Annabeth said. "That was mean."**

"It was," Rachel said.

**"Can't we work together a little?" I pleaded. "I mean, didn't Athena and Poseidon ever cooperate?"**

The two gods eyed each other, and the others in the room stared on waiting to see which bomb went off first.

**Annabeth had to think about it. "I guess ... the chariot," she said tentatively. "My mom invented it, but Poseidon created horses out of the crests of waves. So they had to work together to make it complete."**

"It was an incredible invention," Athena said finally. She noticed Poseidon's smirk and then glared at him. "But I've done better."

"Sure you have," He smiled.

**"Then we can cooperate, too. Right?"**

**We rode into the city, Annabeth watching as the Arch disappeared behind a hotel.**

**"I suppose," she said at last.**

"The start of an era," Travis announced dramatically.

**We pulled into the Amtrak station downtown. The intercom told us we'd have a three-hour layover before departing for Denver.**

**Grover stretched. Before he was even fully awake, he said, "Food."**

**"Come on, goat boy," Annabeth said. "Sightseeing."**

"So you have time to sightsee?" Thalia asked skeptically.

"Hey, if it was the end of the world, then I had to see the arch before it was destroyed," Annabeth said.

**"Sightseeing?"**

**"The Gateway Arch," she said. "This may be my only chance to ride to the top. Are you coming or not?"**

**Grover and I exchanged looks.**

**I wanted to say no, but I figured that if Annabeth was going, we couldn't very well let her go alone.**

At a glare from Athena, Aphrodite quickly backed down and continued her fashion conversation with Percy.

**Grover shrugged. "As long as there's a snack bar without monsters."**

"I like the way Grover thinks," Apollo smiled. "He's always hungry."

Grover blushed and Artemis rolled her eyes.

"And you always say something stupid."

**The Arch was about a mile from the train station. Late in the day the lines to get in weren't that long. We threaded our way through the underground museum, looking at covered wagons and other junk from the 1800s. It wasn't all that thrilling, but Annabeth kept telling us interesting facts about how the Arch was built, and Grover kept passing me jelly beans, so I was okay.**

**I kept looking around, though, at the other people in line. "You smell anything?" I murmured to Grover.**

"It's like you're a dog," Travis laughed.

**He took his nose out of the jelly-bean bag long enough to sniff. "Underground," he said distastefully. "Under ground air always smells like monsters. Probably doesn't mean anything."**

**But something felt wrong to me. I had a feeling we shouldn't be here.**

**"Guys," I said. "You know the gods' symbols of power?"**

**Annabeth had been in the middle of reading about the construction equipment used to build the Arch, but she looked over. "Yeah?"**

"Why would they care about the equipment?" Nico asked.

**"Well, Hade—"**

**Grover cleared his throat. "We're in a public place... You mean, our friend downstairs?"**

"That sounds dirty," Conner smirked.

"You sound like an idiot," Katie shot back.

"You sound hot," He retaliated.

Travis glared while Katie blushed.

**"Um, right," I said. "Our friend **_**way **_**downstairs. Doesn't he have a hat like Annabeth's?"**

Hades gripped his helm of darkness.

**"You mean the Helm of Darkness," Annabeth said. "Yeah, that's his symbol of power. I saw it next to his seat during the winter solstice council meeting."**

**"He was there?" I asked.**

**She nodded. "It's the only time he's allowed to visit Olympus—the darkest day of the year. But his helm is a lot more powerful than my invisibility hat, **

"Damn right it is."

**if what I've heard is true..."**

**"It allows him to become darkness," Grover confirmed. "He can melt into shadow or pass through walls. He can't be touched, or seen, or heard. And he can radiate fear so intense it can drive you insane or stop your heart. Why do you think all rational creatures fear the dark?"**

"That's intense," Nico awed.

Hades smiled smugly at his son's reaction and the others rolled their eyes.

"My bolt still destroys you helm of darkness," Zeus shot at him.

"Yeah right," Hades said.

"You're both idiots," Poseidon said. The gods groaned, thinking that all three were going to fight now. "We're in the middle of a book and you're fighting over something that is impossible to determine."

The brothers gawked and Athena had a small smile at Poseidon's statement.

_Perhaps there's hope for you yet fish face. _She thought.

**"But then ... how do we know he's not here right now, watching us?" I asked.**

"Because I have better things to do."

**Annabeth and Grover exchanged looks.**

**"We don't," Grover said.**

**"Thanks, that makes me feel a lot better," I said. "Got any blue jelly beans left?"**

**I'd almost mastered my jumpy nerves when I saw the tiny little elevator car we were going to ride to the top of the Arch, and I knew I was in trouble. I hate confined places. They make me nuts.**

"ADHD," The demigods said.

**We got shoehorned into the car with this big fat lady and her dog, a Chihuahua with a rhinestone collar. I figured maybe the dog was a seeing-eye Chihuahua, because none of the guards said a word about it.**

"I prefer poodles," Aphrodite shot out.

**We started going up, inside the Arch. I'd never been in an elevator that went in a curve, and my stomach wasn't too happy about it.**

**"No parents?" the fat lady asked us.**

"Random."

**She had beady eyes; pointy, coffee-stained teeth; a floppy denim hat, and a denim dress that bulged so much, she looked like a blue-jean blimp.**

**"They're below," Annabeth told her. "Scared of heights."**

"Now that's a lie," Travis said. He turned to Annabeth. "You're quite the woman," He said in a British accent.

"Sorry, I don't date idiots," Annabeth shot back.

"She dates Percy," Thalia whispered.

**"Oh, the poor darlings."**

**The Chihuahua growled. The woman said, "Now, now, sonny. Behave." The dog had beady eyes like its owner, intelligent and vicious.**

"You guys have horrible luck with dogs," Jason noticed.

**I said, "Sonny. Is that his name?"**

**"No," the lady told me.**

**She smiled, as if that cleared everything up.**

**At the top of the Arch, the observation deck reminded me of a tin can with carpeting. Rows of tiny windows looked out over the city on one side and the river on the other. The view was okay, but if there's anything I like less than a confined space, it's a confined space six hundred feet in the air. I was ready to go pretty quick.**

_I'd die. _Thalia thought.

**Annabeth kept talking about structural supports, and how she would've made the windows bigger, and designed a see-through floor.**

"That'd be awesome," The Stolls said.

**She probably could've stayed up there for hours, but luckily for me the park ranger announced that the observation deck would be closing in a few minutes.**

**I steered Grover and Annabeth toward the exit, loaded them into the elevator, and I was about to get in myself when I realized there were already two other tourists inside. No room for me.**

"Great," Poseidon said.

**The park ranger said, "Next car, sir."**

**"We'll get out," Annabeth said. "We'll wait with you."**

**But that was going to mess everybody up and take even more time, so I said, "Naw, it's okay. I'll see you guys at the bottom."**

"Of course he did," Thalia shook her head.

**Grover and Annabeth both looked nervous, but they let the elevator door slide shut. Their car disappeared down the ramp.**

**Now the only people left on the observation deck were me, a little boy with his parents, the park ranger, and the fat lady with her Chihuahua.**

"I'm guessing something is going to happen with the Chihuahua?" Jason asked.

Annabeth shrugged. "Your guess it as good as mine. I don't know the full details about what happened up there."

**I smiled uneasily at the fat lady. She smiled back, her forked tongue flickering between her teeth.**

"Forked tongue?" Most said.

**Wait a minute.**

**Forked tongue?**

**Before I could decide if I'd really seen that, her Chihuahua jumped down and started yapping at me.**

"I'd kick it," Clarisse smiled, as if picturing it.

**"Now, now, sonny," the lady said. "Does this look like a good time? We have all these nice people here."**

**"Doggie!" said the little boy. "Look, a doggie!"**

**His parents pulled him back.**

**The Chihuahua bared his teeth at me, foam dripping from his black lips.**

**"Well, son," the fat lady sighed. "If you insist."**

**Ice started forming in my stomach. "Urn, did you just call that Chihuahua your son?"**

"So she's crazy," Travis decided.

_**"Chimera, **_**dear," the fat lady corrected. "Not a Chihuahua. It's an easy mistake to make."**

Poseidon paled, just like the demigods.

**She rolled up her denim sleeves, revealing that the skin of her arms was scaly and green. When she smiled, I saw that her teeth were fangs. The pupils of her eyes were side ways slits, like a reptile's.**

**The Chihuahua barked louder, and with each bark, it grew. First to the size of a Doberman, then to a lion. The bark became a roar.**

**The little boy screamed. His parents pulled him back toward the exit, straight into the park ranger, who stood, paralyzed, gaping at the monster.**

"They saw it?" Piper asked.

"I'm not sure," Annabeth said quietly. She was a little scared for Percy's life at the moment and didn't really care about Piper's question.

**The Chimera was now so tall its back rubbed against the roof. It had the head of a lion with a blood-caked mane, the body and hooves of a giant goat, and a serpent for a tail, a ten-foot-long diamondback growing right out of its shaggy behind. The rhinestone dog collar still hung around its neck, and the plate-sized dog tag was now easy to read: CHIMERA—RABID, FIRE-BREATHING, POISONOUS—IF FOUND, PLEASE CALL TARTARUS—EXT. 954.**

"I'd laugh if I wasn't a little worried for Perce," Conner said.

**I realized I hadn't even uncapped my sword. My hands were numb. I was ten feet away from the Chimera's bloody maw, and I knew that as soon as I moved, the creature would lunge.**

**The snake lady made a hissing noise that might've been laughter. "Be honored, Percy Jackson. Lord Zeus rarely allows me to test a hero with one of my brood. For I am the Mother of Monsters, the terrible Echidna!"**

"You sent her!" Thalia screamed at her dad.

Jason too stared at his dad with disappointment. He'd hate it if Poseidon would send a terrible sea creature after him.

Poseidon glared hard at Zeus but said nothing.

"Well how was I supposed to know," Zeus defended himself."

"Logic father," Athena answered and defended Percy's friends. "If you just watched the boy you would know that he doesn't have your bolt."

**I stared at her. All I could think to say was: "Isn't that a kind of anteater?"**

"Not the brightest thing to say," Will said slowly.

**She howled, her reptilian face turning brown and green with rage. "I hate it when people say that! I hate Australia! Naming that ridiculous animal after me. For that, Percy Jackson, my son shall destroy you!"**

"You're lucky I'm not there!" Poseidon roared.

**The Chimera charged, its lion teeth gnashing. I managed to leap aside and dodge the bite.**

**I ended up next to the family and the park ranger, who were all screaming now, trying to pry open the emergency exit doors.**

**I couldn't let them get hurt. **

Everyone smiled at Percy's will to protect the others.

**I uncapped my sword, ran to the other side of the deck, and yelled, "Hey, Chihuahua!" The Chimera turned faster than I would've thought possible.**

"He's getting real good at pissing off the wrong people," Chris noticed.

_Let's hope it doesn't kill him. _Annabeth thought.

**Before I could swing my sword, it opened its mouth, emitting a stench like the world's largest barbecue pit, and shot a column of flame straight at me.**

**I dove through the explosion. The carpet burst into flames; the heat was so intense, it nearly seared off my eye brows.**

"I wonder what would happen to you if it hit you," Jason asked Leo.

Leo shrugged. "Will test it out when we get home."

**Where I had been standing a moment before was a ragged hole in the side of the Arch, with melted metal steaming around the edges.**

**Great, I thought. We just blowtorched a national monument.**

**Riptide was now a shining bronze blade in my hands, and as the Chimera turned, I slashed at its neck.**

**That was my fatal mistake. The blade sparked harmlessly off the dog collar. I tried to regain my balance, but I was so worried about defending myself against the fiery lion's mouth, I completely forgot about the serpent tail until it whipped around and sank its fangs into my calf.**

"NO," Poseidon yelled, and even Sally stopped reading to scream.

The demigods all had grim faces and were all silently thinking how he got out of this one.

The actual Percy in the room, who was oblivious to all of the tension, was playing with a curled lock on Aphrodite's hair. He'd pull it down and watch it jump up and hit him straight in the face softly.

His laughter seemed to break the trance as Sally continued to read.

**My whole leg was on fire. I tried to jab Riptide into the Chimera's mouth, but the serpent tail wrapped around my ankles and pulled me off balance, and my blade flew out of my hand, spinning out of the hole in the Arch and down toward the Mississippi River.**

**I managed to get to my feet, but I knew I had lost. I was weaponless. I could feel deadly poison racing up to my chest. I remembered Chiron saying that Anaklusmos would always return to me, but there was no pen in my pocket. Maybe it had fallen too far away. Maybe it only returned when it was in pen form. I didn't know, and I wasn't going to live long enough to figure it out.**

"It took time, "Chiron said sadly. He hated hearing about Percy when he was in pain.

**I backed into the hole in the wall. The Chimera advanced, growling, smoke curling from its lips. The snake lady, Echidna, cackled. "They don't make heroes like they used to, eh, son?"**

"Shut your trap," Annabeth yelled. "He's more of a hero then you've ever seen."

Athena was too engrossed in the book, and a little worried for Percy, who's younger self had unfortunately grown on her, to frown at Annabeth's compassion for him.

**The monster growled. It seemed in no hurry to finish me off now that I was beaten.**

**I glanced at the park ranger and the family. The little boy was hiding behind his father's legs. I had to protect these people. I couldn't just ... die.**

"Heart of gold hero," Hestia smiled. She turned to Zeus. "Do you see your mistake brother? How can a thief be so compassionate yet want to steal your master bolt and start a war."

Zeus turned away. He couldn't stand to see Hestia's sad eyes.

**I tried to think, but my whole body was on fire. My head felt dizzy. I had no sword. I was facing a massive, fire-breathing monster and its mother. And I was scared.**

From a look from Chris, Clarisse kept her mouth closed.

**There was no place else to go, so I stepped to the edge of the hole. Far, far below, the river glittered.**

Poseidon's eyes widened. _Jump Percy, please jump!_

**If I died, would the monsters go away? Would they leave the humans alone?**

"Don't think like that," Annabeth said sadly. "I hate it when you think like that."

Thalia threw her arm around her friend. Although they knew Percy was okay, they couldn't help but worry.

**"If you are the son of Poseidon," Echidna hissed, "you would not fear water. Jump, Percy Jackson. Show me that water will not harm you. Jump and retrieve your sword. Prove your bloodline."**

"Is she taunting him?" Leo asked.

Everyone shrugged.

**Yeah, right, I thought. I'd read somewhere that jumping into water from a couple of stories up was like jumping onto solid asphalt. From here, I'd splatter on impact.**

"He's right," Athena said quietly.

**The Chimera's mouth glowed red, heating up for an other blast.**

**"You have no faith," Echidna told me. "You do not trust the gods. I cannot blame you, little coward. Better you die now. The gods are faithless. The poison is in your heart."**

"She speaks so highly of you," Hera snapped at Zeus.

"He isn't a coward!" Nico shouted.

**She was right: I was dying. I could feel my breath slowing down. Nobody could save me, not even the gods.**

"I could," Apollo said. "I would have if I had known."

Artemis, a little shocked, smiled that went unnoticed by everyone at Apollo.

**I backed up and looked down at the water. I remembered the warm glow of my father's smile when I was a baby. He must have seen me. He must have visited me when I was in my cradle.**

"I did Percy, and I still do," Poseidon smiled.

**I remembered the swirling green trident that had appeared above my head the night of capture the flag, when Poseidon had claimed me as his son.**

**But this wasn't the sea. This was the Mississippi, dead center of the USA. There was no Sea God here.**

"I'm always there Percy, always," He said quietly.

**"Die, faithless one," Echidna rasped, and the Chimera sent a column of flame toward my face.**

**"Father, help me," I prayed.**

"Please, just jump," Poseidon encouraged.

"He'll die," Athena said.

**I turned and jumped. My clothes on fire, poison coursing through my veins, I plummeted toward the river.**

"Bedtime." said Chiron.

"Awwww." said Leo, Hermes, and Apollo.

* * *

**Cantwaittillfall**: i appreciate your support.

**Thanx to everyone who reviewed!  
Cookies for everyone. (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::)**


	20. Attention

A lot of you have noticed I mixed up the chapters. I know. so if you could all stop hounding me about that would eb awesome. I'm not perfect. Thanx for all the reviews though. I understand you are only trying to help.

**MiraSaya16:** I swear on the River Styx that I will read before posting. *Cue thunder*

I will try to update soon.

Please read and review my other story, The Hero Returns.

I want to make another fanfic that has this summary:

"Percy Jackson had a normal life. Or as normal as it could when being a celebrity. When having a concert in New York, Percy bumbs into a girl who he has never met but feels like he knows her. Annabeth Chase led a normal life in New York City. But that all changed when she met Percy Jackson. She felt like she knew him from the past. He couldn't be..." Percy and Annabeth are demigods in this fanfic

Let me know if you want me to write it.


	21. known fugitive

Sorry I haven't updated in a while. I've been writing another story titled Together? Or Never?

Here's what it's about:Percy Jackson had a normal life. Or as normal as it could when being a celebrity. When having a concert in New York, Percy bumbs into a girl who he has never met but feels like he knows her. Annabeth Chase led a normal life in New York City. But that all changed when she met Percy Jackson. She felt like she knew him from the past. He couldn't be... Percy and Annabeth are demigods.

* * *

If you guys could check this out and review, that'd be great. Also, if you could check out The Hero Returns and also review on it, thanx alot.

* * *

Thanks to everyone to who reviewed. Um, what else... Oh yeah! I saw Breaking Dawn Part 2 on Saturday. You guys have to check it out, it's AWESOME! Enjoy the update.

* * *

**''I Become a Know Fugitive," **Will started.

"It's about time," Conner said. "I've been waiting for Perce to show some initiative."

"For what?" Piper asked.

"TaFfL" Travis replied.

"What?" Percy asked.

"Thieves and Fugitives for Life." Connor said. Hermes smiled at his children while Artemis smacked him in the back of the head.

**I'd love to tell you I had some deep revelation on my way down, that I came to terms with my own mortality, laughed in the face of death, etcetera.**

"He's laughed at me before," Nico muttered.

"Dude, I'm sorry." Percy said to Nico.

**The truth? My only thought was: Aaaaggghhhhh!**

"Deep, truthful, and intelligent," Travis summed up. "I like it." Annabeth rolled her eyes at the same time as Percy.

"Creepy," Connor muttered to Leo.

**The river raced toward me at the speed of a truck. Wind ripped the breath from my lungs. Steeples and skyscrapers and bridges tumbled in and out of my vision.**

**And then: **_**Flaaa-boooom!**_

Sally, Annabeth, and Poseidon leaned forward and waited eagerly.

**A whiteout of bubbles. I sank through the murk, sure that I was about to end up embedded in a hundred feet of mud and lost forever.**

**But my impact with the water hadn't hurt.**

"Oh thank you," Sally breathed a sigh in relief.

"That's awesome," Leo said amazed. He turned to the other big three kids. "I know Zeus's kids would just fly if they fell, but what would happen with a child of Hades?"

Nico shrugged, but Thalia answered.

"Maybe if we toss him off a building into a shadow, he could shadow travel," Thalia suggested.

"Or maybe I'd die," Nico answered.

"So can we try it?" Asked Percy and Thalia.

"NO!" Shouted Annabeth, Athena, and Hermes.

Percy and Thalia pouted.

**I was falling slowly now, bubbles trickling up through my fingers. I settled on the river bottom soundlessly. A catfish the size of my stepfather lurched away into the gloom. Clouds of silt and disgusting garbage—beer bottles, old shoes, plastic bags—swirled up all around me.**

"That's horrible," Grover said horrified.

**At that point, I realized a few things: first, I had not been flattened into a pancake. **

"Which is good," Jason said.

"To some," Dionysus muttered from his throne.

"Perseus is a kind and intelligent young hero." Artemis defended Percy. Percy smiled at the goddess.

**I had not been barbecued. I couldn't even feel the Chimera poison boiling in my veins anymore. I was alive, which was good.**

"That water destroyed the poison," Athena concluded. "That's amazing."

Poseidon smiled smugly at her. "A perk from being my son."

Athena glared at him but was met with Percy who was nodding his head at her as if he was agreeing with his father.

_Damn you and those eyes sea spawn. _Athena thought.

_Oh stop whining. _Aphrodite thought to her. _He's so freaking cute, I just wish I could put him in my purse and walk around._

_That's child abuse. _Athena shot back.

_It's fashionable, I'll feed him cookies, and buy him a t-shirt, we'll have fun._

**Second realization: I wasn't wet. I mean, I could feel the coolness of the water. I could see where the fire on my clothes had been quenched. But when I touched my own shirt, it felt perfectly dry.**

"That's awesome," Leo awed.

"It is cool," Piper agreed. "No disrespect to Zeus and Hades children, but is it just me, or do Poseidon children have more powers?"

Jason frowned but noticed that Thalia and Nico were agreeing slightly.

"Hate it, but it's true," Thalia mumbled. "I mean, we have control over air and lightning, but it's nothing compared to what Percy could do."

"How'd it feel to say that?" Annabeth asked with a smile on her face.

"Horrible," Thalia grinned. Percy smiled smugly.

"But I can still pulverize you in a sword fight." Thalia said.

"HA!" Laughed Percy along with Clarisse, Connor, Travis, and Annabeth.

Percy smiled smugly and got zapped by a bit of lighnting. Percy threw a wave towards Thalia, but she dfelcted, and electrocuted it. Percy's hair was sticking up and steaming. Annabeth shot a look towards Thalia as if saying, behave and don't kill him.

**I looked at the garbage floating by and snatched an old cigarette lighter.**

**No way, I thought.**

**I flicked the lighter. It sparked. A tiny flame appeared, right there at the bottom of the Mississippi.**

"Now that's awesome!" Leo said.

"Okay, we get it!" Clarisse shouted. "Percy's awesome!"

"What was that Clarisse?" Percy asked.

**I grabbed a soggy hamburger wrapper out of the current and immediately the paper turned dry.**

Leo's smile widened but decided to keep his thoughts to himself.

**I lit it with no problem. As soon as I let it go, the flames sputtered out. The wrapper turned back into a slimy rag. Weird.**

**But the strangest thought occurred to me only last: I was breathing. I was underwater, and I was breathing normally.**

"A little slow huh?" Rachel laughed. "I mean, he must have realized that once he stayed under water right?"

"It's Percy Rachel," Katie said. "It took him five years to realize something else."

Annabeth and Percy blushed crimson red.

**I stood up, thigh-deep in mud. My legs felt shaky. My hands trembled. I should've been dead. The fact that I wasn't seemed like ... well, a miracle. I imagined a woman's voice, a voice that sounded a bit like my mother: **_**Percy, what do you say?**_

Sally smiled.

**"Um ... thanks." Underwater, I sounded like I did on recordings, like a much older kid. "Thank you ... Father."**

"You're very welcome," Poseidon smiled at Baby Percy as he lifted him up high.

"Higher, higher," Baby Percy laughed as her pretended to fly.

"Any higher and I'll kill you," Zeus stated. The other gods stared wide eyed at him. "It's a joke."

"Better be," Hera whispered. "Or you will be pulverized by your own wife."

**No response. Just the dark drift of garbage downriver, the enormous catfish gliding by, the flash of sunset on the water's surface far above, turning everything the color of butterscotch.**

**Why had Poseidon saved me? The more I thought about it, the more ashamed I felt. So I'd gotten lucky a few times before. Against a thing like the Chimera, I had never stood a chance.**

"You do now Perce," Grover smiled. Percy smiled at his best friend.

**Those poor people in the Arch were probably toast. I couldn't protect them. I was no hero. Maybe I should just stay down here with the catfish, join the bottom feeders.**

"He lacks confidence huh," Piper noticed.

"At the beginning," Grover said, remembering Percy's early quests. "But he gets better." Annabeth smiled at the sleeping Percy in her lap.

_**Fump-fump-fump.**_** A riverboat's paddlewheel churned above me, swirling the silt around.**

**There, not five feet in front of me, was my sword, its gleaming bronze hilt sticking up in the mud.**

**I heard that woman's voice again: **_**Percy, take the sword. Your father believes in you. **_**This time, I knew the voice wasn't in my head. I wasn't imagining it. Her words seemed to come from everywhere, rippling through the water like dolphin sonar.**

**"Where are you?" I called aloud.**

"Is he hallucinating?" Travis asked.

"No," Annabeth said. "Unlike you."

**Then, through the gloom, I saw her—a woman the color of the water, a ghost in the current, floating just above the sword. She had long billowing hair, and her eyes, barely visible, were green like mine.**

**A lump formed in my throat. I said, "Mom?"**

Sally's eyes widened. _Could this be me?_

_**No, child, only a messenger, though your mother's fate is not as hope less as you believe. Go to the beach in Santa Monica.**_

**"What?"**

_**It is your father's will. Before you descend into the Underworld, you must go to Santa Monica. Please, Percy, I cannot stay long. The river here is too foul for my presence.**_

"Who is she?" Rachel asked. She was met with silence. "Alright then."

**"But ..." I was sure this woman was my mother, or a vision of her, anyway. "Who—how did you—"**

**There was so much I wanted to ask, the words jammed up in my throat.**

_**I cannot stay, brave one, **_**the woman said. She reached out, and I felt the current brush my face like a caress. **_**You must go to Santa Monica! And, Percy, do not trust the gifts...**_

Annabeth and Grover's eyes both widened.

"She knew," Annabeth whispered.

"Knew what?" Thalia whispered.

"Nothing."

**Her voice faded.**

**"Gifts?" I asked. "What gifts? Wait!"**

"Yes, what gifts?" Athena asked curiously.

**She made one more attempt to speak, but the sound was gone. Her image melted away. If it was my mother, I had lost her again.**

Sally frowned yet again.

**I felt like drowning myself. The only problem: I was immune to drowning.**

_**Your father believes in you, **_**she had said.**

"I do Percy, always," He said quietly.

"I know, Dad." Percy said in his sleep.

**She'd also called me brave ... unless she was talking to the catfish.**

"No Seaweed Brain, definitely you," Annabeth smiled. Percy made some Seaweed appear and dumped it on Annabeth's head.

"Percy!" Annabeth complained.

**I waded toward Riptide and grabbed it by the hilt. The Chimera might still be up there with its snaky, fat mother, waiting to finish me off. At the very least, the mortal police would be arriving, trying to figure out who had blown a hole in the Arch. If they found me, they'd have some questions.**

**I capped my sword, stuck the ballpoint pen in my pocket. "Thank you, Father," I said again to the dark water.**

**Then I kicked up through the muck and swam for the surface.**

**I came ashore next to a floating McDonald's.**

A couple stomachs grumbled at the mention of McDonald's.

"Great idea," Apollo smiled. He snapped his fingers and a Big Mac appeared on his lap. "Beautiful."

"Disgusting," Artemis gagged.

"Do you have any clue how many calories are in there!" Aphrodite shrieked.

"Do you know the starting line up to the Yankees?" Apollo shot back. He was answered with a blank stare. "Thought so."

"Idiot." Artemis and Aphrodite muttered.

**A block away, every emergency vehicle in St. Louis was surrounding the Arch. Police helicopters circled overhead. The crowd of onlookers reminded me of Times Square on New Year's Eve.**

**A little girl said, "Mama! That boy walked out of the river."**

**"That's nice, dear," her mother said, craning her neck to watch the ambulances.**

"Arrogant mortal," Athena said.

**"But he's dry!"**

**"That's nice, dear."**

"They never listen to the children," Travis laughed.

"Yeah I know," Conner agreed. "They're like birds."

Olympus stared at the twins.

"Did you drop them?" Hephaestus asked to Hermes.

"No, seriously," Conner said. "Think about it, when the world ends, the first sign is crazy bird reactions, but we never listen, in the movies they just stare on. Just like kids. They always see it but no one ever listens."

"I think Clarisse hit your head when you were sparring or something," Chris pointed out.

**A news lady was talking for the camera: "Probably not a terrorist attack, we're told, but it's still very early in the investigation. The damage, as you can see, is very serious. We're trying to get to some of the survivors, to question them about eyewitness reports of someone falling from the Arch."**

_**Survivors.**_** I felt a surge of relief. Maybe the park ranger and that family made it out safely. I hoped Annabeth and Grover were okay.**

Annabeth and Percy blushed.

**I tried to push through the crowd to see what was going on inside the police line.**

**"... an adolescent boy," another reporter was saying. "Channel Five has learned that surveillance cameras show an adolescent boy going wild on the observation deck, somehow setting off this freak explosion. Hard to believe, John, but that's what we're hearing. Again, no confirmed fatalities …"**

"So now he's a terrorist," Nico laughed. "Honestly, where do they come up with these stories?"

"from your ass." replied Percy in his sleep.

"This kid is awesome." Hermes lauhed. Bug mistake. Percy shot a wave at him and Hermes dried up.

**I backed away, trying to keep my head down. I had to go a long way around the police perimeter. Uniformed officers and news reporters were everywhere.**

**I'd almost lost hope of ever finding Annabeth and Grover when a familiar voice bleated, "Perrr-cy!"**

**I turned and got tackled by Grover's bear hug—or goat hug. He said, "We thought you'd gone to Hades the hard way!"**

"Yes, come to me," Hades smirked.

"You're a pervert," Demeter snapped. "Do you realize how creepy you are?"

"Do you realize how annoying you are?" Hades shot back.

**Annabeth stood behind him, trying to look angry, but even she seemed relieved to see me.**

"I was," Annabeth said while blushing. Percy kissed her cheek.

"AWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW !" I'll let you guess who said that.

**"We can't leave you alone for five minutes! What happened?"**

"Is that your way of saying, 'thank gods you're okay?'" Piper smiled.

"Pretty much," Annabeth answered with a smile. While Percy smiled.

**"I sort of fell."**

"Riiight, and I sort of stole Annabeth's lap top," Conner smirked. "It's black and white Perce."

"You stole my lap top!"Annabeth shouted.

"Hypothetically," He answered. "Sort of," He whispered. Percy shot a wave at Connor and demanded that he give it back.

**"Percy! Six hundred and thirty feet?"**

Thalia paled.

**Behind us, a cop shouted, "Gangway!" The crowd parted, and a couple of paramedics hustled out, rolling a woman on a stretcher. I recognized her immediately as the mother of the little boy who'd been on the observation deck. She was saying, "And then this huge dog, this huge fire-breathing Chihuahua—"**

"She saw?" Jason asked.

"Who knows," Grover said. "She might be clear sighted.

"Well at least she's alive," Jason pointed out.

**"Okay, ma'am," the paramedic said. "Just calm down. Your family is fine. The medication is starting to kick in."**

"There they go again," Chris said. "She tells the truth and they ignore it!"

**"I'm not crazy! This boy jumped out of the hole and the monster disappeared." Then she saw me. "There he is! That's the boy!"**

**I turned quickly and pulled Annabeth and Grover after me. We disappeared into the crowd.**

**"What's going on?" Annabeth demanded. "Was she talking about the Chihuahua on the elevator?"**

"Unless you saw another Chihuahua," Nico said before earning a glare from Annabeth and Percy. "Right, I'll shut up now."

**I told them the whole story of the Chimera, Echidna, my high-dive act, and the underwater lady's message.**

**"Whoa," said Grover. "We've got to get you to Santa Monica! You can't ignore a summons from your dad."**

"Way to state the obvious," Clarisse mumbled.

**Before Annabeth could respond, we passed another reporter doing a news break, and I almost froze in my tracks when he said, "Percy Jackson. That's right, Dan. Channel Twelve has learned that the boy who may have caused this explosion fits the description of a young man wanted by authorities for a serious New Jersey bus accident three days ago. **_**And **_**the boy is believed to be traveling west. For our viewers at home, here is a photo of Percy Jackson."**

"So now he's all over the news," Travis said. "Perce sure is making a name for himself."

"Yes, but not in a good way," Katie said.

"What better way is there, he's wanted all over the States, that's awesome," Conner said. Annabeth turned invisible and dragged both Stolls out of the room by the ear.

**We ducked around the news van and slipped into an alley.**

**"First things first," I told Grover. "We've got to get out of town!"**

**Somehow, we made it back to the Amtrak station with out getting spotted. We got on board the train just before it pulled out for Denver. The train trundled west as darkness fell, police lights still pulsing against the St. Louis skyline behind us.**


	22. cheeseburgers and spiders

"**A God Buys us Cheeseburgers," **Chris read.

"Can we have lunch after this?" Apollo asked.

"Sure."

**The next afternoon, June 14, seven days before the solstice, our train rolled into Denver. We hadn't eaten since the night before in the dining car, somewhere in Kansas. We hadn't taken a shower since Half-Blood Hill, and I was sure that was obvious.**

"He's right. He stunk," Annabeth laughed.

"Riiight, and you smelled like roses and dandelions," Grover snickered.

"Shut it goat boy!"

**"Let's try to contact Chiron," Annabeth said. "I want to tell him about your talk with the river spirit."**

**"We can't use phones, right?"**

"Too bad," Travis sulked. His eyes widened before his head shot up and looked at Chiron. "Holy Hephaestus Chiron, I have an amazing idea for camp."

"What is it Travis," Chiron humored him. "And please, no parks, malls, or zoos."

"It was a restaurant, not a mall," Conner defended.

"Forget that," Travis said. "What if we had the Hephaestus cabin install a phone line through the boundaries of camp and have each cabin have a unique phone to call the other cabins."

"For what purpose?" Chiron asked.

"You know, call your significant other, uh, call a friend and tell them to meet you at the archery range, I dunno, anything really."

Annabeth sighed. "That's not half bad."

"Yes, but I still don't see the point," Katie said.

"You're just jealous," Travis smiled. He turned to Leo. "You in?"

"You bet," Leo smiled.

**"I'm not talking about phones."**

**We wandered through downtown for about half an hour, though I wasn't sure what Annabeth was looking for. The air was dry and hot, which felt weird after the humidity of St. Louis. Everywhere we turned, the Rocky Mountains seemed to be staring at me, like a tidal wave about to crash into the city.**

**Finally we found an empty do-it-yourself car wash. We veered toward the stall farthest from the street, keeping our eyes open for patrol cars. We were three adolescents hanging out at a car wash without a car; any cop worth his doughnuts would figure we were up to no good.**

"Doughnuts," Apollo's mouth watered.

**"What exactly are we doing?" I asked, as Grover took out the spray gun.**

**"It's seventy-five cents," he grumbled. "I've only got two quarters left. Annabeth?"**

**"Don't look at me," she said. "The dining car wiped me out."**

"Sure it did," Nico laughed.

**I fished out my last bit of change and passed Grover a quarter, which left me two nickels and one drachma from Medusa's place.**

**"Excellent," Grover said. "We could do it with a spray bottle, of course, but the connection isn't as good, and my arm gets tired of pumping."**

**"What are you talking about?"**

**He fed in the quarters and set the knob to FINE MIST. "I-M'ing."**

"Right, because that clears everything up," Leo said.

**"Instant messaging?"**

**"**_**Iris**_**-messaging," Annabeth corrected. "The rainbow goddess Iris carries messages for the gods. If you know how to ask, and she's not too busy, she'll do the same for half-bloods."**

"I don't get it, if Hermes is the god of messengers, why does Iris do it?" Piper asked.

"She's the goddess of messengers as well," Hermes explained. "We both have are roll to play."

"Admit it, you're lazy dad," Conner smiled.

Hermes looked shocked but then grinned. "Guilty."

**"You summon the goddess with a spray gun?"**

**Grover pointed the nozzle in the air and water hissed out in a thick white mist. "Unless you know an easier way to make a rainbow."**

**Sure enough, late afternoon light filtered through the vapor and broke into colors.**

**Annabeth held her palm out to me. "Drachma, please."**

"You actually said please," Thalia said. "At least the friend's concept is getting better."

**I handed it over.**

**She raised the coin over her head. "O goddess, accept our offering."**

**She threw the drachma into the rainbow. It disappeared in a golden shimmer.**

**"Half-Blood Hill," Annabeth requested.**

**For a moment, nothing happened.**

**Then I was looking through the mist at strawberry fields, and the Long Island Sound in the distance. We seemed to be on the porch of the Big House. Standing with his back to us at the railing was a sandy-haired guy in shorts and an orange tank top. He was holding a bronze sword and seemed to be staring intently at something down in the meadow.**

**"Luke!" I called.**

Hermes smiled.

**He turned, eyes wide. I could swear he was standing three feet in front of me through a screen of mist, except I could only see the part of him that appeared in the rainbow.**

**"Percy!" His scarred face broke into a grin. "Is that Annabeth, too? Thank the gods! Are you guys okay?"**

_Because you care. _Nico thought.

**"We're ... uh ... fine," Annabeth stammered. She was madly straightening her dirty T-shirt, trying to comb the loose hair out of her face.**

Everyone laughed at Annabeth as she tried to glare at all of them.

"Please, if you choose to date, he would be acceptable," Athena said over the wave of laughter.

"I'm not dating him!" Annabeth snapped.

"Why? He's a good looking boy," Hermes said.

"I don't like him that way," Annabeth gritted her teeth. _I'm in love with Percy._

**"We thought—Chiron—I mean—"**

**"He's down at the cabins." Luke's smile faded. "We're having some issues with the campers.** **Listen, is everything cool with you? Is Grover all right?"**

**"I'm right here," Grover called. He held the nozzle out to one side and stepped into Luke's line of vision. "What kind of issues?"**

**Just then a big Lincoln Continental pulled into the car wash with its stereo turned to maximum hip-hop. As the car slid into the next stall, the bass from the subwoofers vibrated so much, it shook the pavement.**

**"Chiron had to—what's that noise?" Luke yelled.**

**"I'll take care of it.'" Annabeth yelled back, looking very relieved to have an excuse to get out of sight.**

"Gods, how why does he think of these things," Annabeth huffed in annoyance as everyone laughed.

"You know he only does it because he's jealous," Rachel whispered in her ear as she laughed.

Annabeth blushed, but continued to glare.

**"Grover, come on!"**

**"What?" Grover said. "But—"**

**"Give Percy the nozzle and come on!" she ordered.**

**Grover muttered something about girls being harder to understand than the Oracle at Delphi, then he handed me the spray gun and followed Annabeth.**

All the girls in the throne room glanced at Grover who was trying to hide himself behind Nico's shoulder.

"So we're hard to understand goat boy," Thalia finally said.

"He has a point," Zeus muttered.

Soon, all the gods, and then all the demigods, including Chiron for some reason, took Grover's side.

"I agree with the satyr, women are confusing creatures," Hades grumbled.

"Well when you abduct them, they aren't going to roll over and fetch," Demeter snapped.

"STOP THIS," Aphrodite yelled. She walked over to the middle of the throne room and gently placed Percy onto the floor. "We'll let Baby Percy decide, since he has no clue what everyone's bickering about."

She looked down at Percy who smiled up at her a little confused. "Okay handsome, I want you to pick, girls, or boys." She slowly kneeled down to him and whispered so that only he could hear. "I know you probably want your mommy or daddy, but prove me right, Annabeth's a girl."

With those last words, Aphrodite sat back in her throne and watched as the quiet throne room stared at Percy who was sitting down and spinning his head around the room.

He spun around a couple times, at first Aphrodite thought he was going to side with the guys when Percy's gaze rested on the Stolls and Will, who were trying to grab his attention by Will attempting to shoot an apple off Conner's head, but then his eyes widened and a huge brilliant smile filled his face.

He got on all fours, and began to crawl like a baby possessed straight towards Annabeth's legs.

"Of course," Clarisse mumbled.

Percy laughed and giggled as Annabeth held him close and the two laughed as everyone stared.

"You actually thought he was coming to you," Annabeth laughed.

"Who cares," Athena said. "What I would like to know is why he's always coming to you?"

"Don't be jealous, "Poseidon smiled as Percy had his face covered with tiny fart sounds from Annabeth. "He obviously has fun with your daughter."

"Yeah, making out," Nico whispered but Sally heard and paled.

_Please don't have grand children. _Sally thought.

"OW! WHAT WAS THAT FOR?" Nico yelled

"For being an idiot." Percy and Annabeth replied. Both of them had punched Nico.

**I readjusted the hose so I could keep the rainbow going and still see Luke.**

**"Chiron had to break up a fight," Luke shouted to me over the music. "Things are pretty tense here, Percy. Word leaked out about the Zeus—Poseidon standoff. We're still not sure how—probably the same scumbag who summoned the hellhound.**

"Wow, just called himself a scumbag," Travis snickered silently to Conner.

**Now the campers are starting to take sides. It's shaping up like the Trojan War all over again. Aphrodite, Ares, and Apollo are backing Poseidon, more or less. Athena is backing Zeus."**

"Nice to see my children are backing my brother," Zeus glared at Apollo and Ares.

"Could you blame us," Apollo smiled. "Uncle P rocks!"

"I rock," Poseidon smiled at Zeus.

"You may, to them, but I have my daughter as master strategist," Zeus smirked.

"But dear brother, don't you think Annabeth would side with my son?" Percy and Annabeth were blushing deeply while Baby Percy was fascinated with Annabeth's hair.

**I shuddered to think that Clarisse's cabin would ever be on my dad's side for anything.**

**In the next stall, I heard Annabeth and some guy arguing with each other, then the music's volume decreased drastically.**

"What'd you do?" Thalia asked.

"Threaten to call the cops for disturbing the peace."

**"So what's your status?" Luke asked me. "Chiron will be sorry he missed you."**

"Yes, if I had known," Chiron said quietly.

**I told him pretty much everything, including my dreams. It felt so good to see him, to feel like I was back at camp even for a few minutes, that I didn't realize how long I had talked until the beeper went off on the spray machine, and I realized I only had one more minute before the water shut off.**

**"I wish I could be there," Luke told me. "We can't help much from here, I'm afraid, but listen ... it had to be Hades who took the master bolt. He was there at Olympus at the winter solstice. I was chaperoning a field trip and we saw him."**

"I don't like this boy of yours Hermes," Hades glared at him, as did Nico. "Accusing a major god is not something the boy wants to do."

"Leave him out of this," Hermes glared back. "What other choice does he have. You were there for the one day, and that's the day the bolt when missing. Coincidence?"

Hades glared harder. "Or perfect time for a setup, wouldn't you say dear niece," Hades turned to Athena. "Logically speaking, if the bolt was going to be stolen, would that day not be best to steal it?"

Athena nodded slowly. "He…he has a point, but we still know nothing."

**"But Chiron said the gods can't take each other's magic items directly."**

Hades nodded.

**"That's true," Luke said, looking troubled. "Still ... Hades has the helm of darkness. How could anybody else sneak into the throne room and steal the master bolt? You'd have to be invisible."**

Annabeth's eyes widened. "He tried to pin this on me!"

Athena now spun in her seat at Hermes. "Maybe Hades is right. The boy should learn to keep his mouth shut before accusing my daughter!"

"He didn't even say that," Hermes shot back.

"No he didn't," Poseidon broke in. "But he implied, and now he gave Percy the thought of knowing that Annabeth could very well be the thief. Pretty slick, but wouldn't expect less from a child of Hermes."

Annabeth glared at Percy until he said that he would never believe that she stole it.

"Well, isn't it obvious," Poseidon stared down at the three boys. "No disrespect boys, seeing as though you seem close with my son, but if I didn't know better, I'd say you all inherited your father's abilities of persuasion. So, Luke may be using that if he truly believes that Annabeth did in fact steal the bolt."

"That made sense," Athena said. She turned to her daughter. "But you didn't steal it right?"

"Of course not," Annabeth exclaimed.

"We will see," Zeus glared at her but received a glare from Percy, Annabeth, Thalia, Nico, Baby Percy, and the rest of the demigods. But Sally's was the worst.

**We were both silent, until Luke seemed to realize what he'd said.**

**"Oh, hey," he protested. "I didn't mean Annabeth. She and I have known each other forever. She would never ... I mean, she's like a little sister to me."**

"So you would accuse your sister," Thalia said coldly.

**I wondered if Annabeth would like that description.**

Everyone stared at Annabeth for confirmation.

"Sister's fine," She said. "Anything but dating!"

"Riiight," Will laughed. "Explain the blushes."

"Explain the broken arm you're about to get if you don't shut up," Annabeth said. "And I'm sure you wouldn't trust your siblings Will. They love it when they're treating you."

Will paled at the thought. "Sorry." Will smirked at Percy and got slappped.

**In the stall next to us, the music stopped completely. A man screamed in terror, car doors slammed, and the Lincoln peeled out of the car wash.**

"What'd you do?" Percy asked.

Annabeth shrugged. "I may have pulled my knife on him."

**"You'd better go see what that was," Luke said. "Listen, are you wearing the flying shoes? I'll feel better if I know they've done you some good."**

_Sure you would. _Percy thought.

**"Oh ... uh, yeah!" I tried not to sound like a guilty liar. "Yeah, they've come in handy."**

**"Really?" He grinned. "They fit and everything?"**

**The water shut off. The mist started to evaporate.**

**"Well, take care of yourself out there in Denver," Luke called, his voice getting fainter. "And tell Grover it'll be better this time! Nobody will get turned into a pine tree if he just—"**

Grover paled.

"What a jerk!" Thalia shouted. "He did that on purpose!"

Everyone stared a little confused at Thalia who waved them off.

_Gods Luke, I don't even know you anymore. _Annabeth thought.

**But the mist was gone, and Luke's image faded to nothing. I was alone in a wet, empty car wash stall.**

**Annabeth and Grover came around the corner, laughing, but stopped when they saw my face. Annabeth's smile faded. "What happened, Percy? What did Luke say?"**

**"Not much," I lied, my stomach feeling as empty as a Big Three cabin.**

**"Come on, let's find some dinner."**

**A few minutes later, we were sitting at a booth in a gleaming chrome diner.**

**All around us, families were eating burgers and drinking malts and sodas.**

**Finally the waitress came over. She raised her eyebrow skeptically. "Well?"**

**I said, "We, um, want to order dinner."**

"Well obviously," Clarisse said. "What else are you going to do?"

**"You kids have money to pay for it?"**

"What kind of question is that?" Piper asked. "I've never heard that before."

"We pretty much looked like we crawled out of a dumpster at the time," Grover explained.

**Grover's lower lip quivered. I was afraid he would start bleating, or worse, start eating the linoleum.**

**Annabeth looked ready to pass out from hunger.**

**I was trying to think up a sob story for the waitress when a rumble shook the whole building; a motorcycle the size of a baby elephant had pulled up to the curb.**

Mostly everyone looked at Ares suspiciously.

**All conversation in the diner stopped. The motorcycle's headlight glared red. Its gas tank had flames painted on it, and a shotgun holster riveted to either side, complete with shotguns. The seat was leather—but leather that looked like ... well, Caucasian human skin.**

"What are you doing there?" Hephaestus asked. He knew immediately that it was Ares. He had fixed that bike more times than he could count.

"How am I supposed to know!" Ares shot back.

**The guy on the bike would've made pro wrestlers run for Mama. **

Ares smiled at that.

**He was dressed in a red muscle shirt and black jeans and a black leather duster, with a hunting knife strapped to his thigh. He wore red wraparound shades, and he had the cruelest, most brutal face I'd ever seen— handsome, I guess, but wicked—with an oily black crew cut and cheeks that were scarred from many, many fights. The weird thing was, I felt like I'd seen his face somewhere before.**

"Definitely me," Ares smiled smugly.

"Maybe," Aphrodite thought. "But you're definitely not handsome, right handsome?" Aphrodite smiled at Percy.

"Yup."

**As he walked into the diner, a hot, dry wind blew through the place. All the people rose, as if they were hypnotized, but the biker waved his hand dismissively and they all sat down again. Everybody went back to their conversations. The waitress blinked, as if somebody had just pressed the rewind button on her brain. She asked us again, "You kids have money to pay for it?"**

**The biker said, "It's on me." He slid into our booth, which was way too small for him, and crowded Annabeth against the window.**

"Thanks for that, by the way," Annabeth mumbled.

**He looked up at the waitress, who was gaping at him, and said, "Are you still here?"**

"Be nice Ares," Hestia said. "She's just doing her job."

Ares was about to tell Hestia to screw off, but noticed the tight grip Poseidon had on his trident and the stormy look his father had in his eyes.

**He pointed at her, and she stiffened. She turned as if she'd been spun around, then marched back toward the kitchen.**

**The biker looked at me. I couldn't see his eyes behind the red shades, but bad feelings started boiling in my stomach. Anger, resentment, bitterness. I wanted to hit a wall. I wanted to pick a fight with somebody. Who did this guy think he was?**

"His power is affecting him," Athena said.

"Yeah," Ares smiled. "It's always better when they're pissed off. Makes the fight a lot more exciting."

**He gave me a wicked grin. "So you're old Seaweed's kid, huh?"**

"Yes he is," Poseidon glared and then turned to Clarisse. "So you're big mouths kid huh?"

Clarisse snickered as the rest did.

**I should've been surprised, or scared, but instead I felt like I was looking at my stepdad, Gabe. I wanted to rip this guy's head off. "What's it to you?"**

"Uh oh," The three new demigods said.

Sally looked at Ares who was smiling. _Please Percy, hold your tongue._

**Annabeth's eyes flashed me a warning. "Percy, this is—"**

**The biker raised his hand.**

**"S'okay," he said. "I don't mind a little attitude. Long as you remember who's the boss. You know who I am, little cousin?"**

"You're definitely not the boss," Zeus said to him.

**Then it struck me why this guy looked familiar. He had the same vicious sneer as some of the kids at Camp Half-Blood, the ones from cabin five.**

**"You're Clarisse's dad," I said.** **"Ares, god of war."**

**Ares grinned and took off his shades. Where his eyes should've been, there was only fire, empty sockets glowing with miniature nuclear explosions. "That's right, punk. I heard you broke Clarisse's spear."**

**"She was asking for it."**

"Was not!"

"Was too," The others moaned.

"I'll show you little punk."

"You wanna go now? Let's go because I can you're but."

"I'd break before you could."

"Clarisse," Annabeth said in that would make Zeus run for his mom.

**"Probably. That's cool. I don't fight my kids' fights, you know? What I'm here for—I heard you were in town. I got a little proposition for you."**

"It's great to see you have your daughter's back," Artemis glared at Ares. "You don't have to fight her battles to show support."

"What would you know," Ares glared. "You don't have any children anyways so but out."

Apollo pulled out a bow and aimed it straight at Ares's head. "Don't talk to my sister like that, understand?"

Ares grinned." Whatcha gonna do Sunshine?"

Another small blast of water hit Ares's face and Baby Percy threw a wave at Ares.

"No make fun Arty." Baby Percy said firmly.

"Nothing," Apollo smirked. "Baby Perce's got my back."

Artemis shot a quick smile at Baby Percy and then stared a little uncertainly at Apollo.

_That was….nice._ She thought.

**The waitress came back with heaping trays of food—cheeseburgers, fries, onion rings, and chocolate shakes.**

**Ares handed her a few gold drachmas.**

**She looked nervously at the coins. "But, these aren't..."**

**Ares pulled out his huge knife and started cleaning his fingernails. "Problem, sweetheart?"**

"You're an ass," Aphrodite glared at him.

**The waitress swallowed, then left with the gold.**

**"You can't do that," I told Ares. "You can't just threaten people with a knife."**

**Ares laughed. "Are you kidding? I love this country. Best place since Sparta. Don't you carry a weapon, punk? You should. Dangerous world out there. Which brings me to my proposition. I need you to do me a favor."**

**"What favor could I do for a god?"**

**"Something a god doesn't have time to do himself. It's nothing much. I left my shield at an abandoned water park here in town. I was going on a little ... date with my girl friend. We were interrupted. I left my shield behind. I want you to fetch it for me."**

"He isn't a dog," Sally said a little too loudly.

The female goddess stared a little wide eyed and then smiled at her.

"Watch who you're talking to sweetheart," Ares smirked. "I'm a god."

"Don't you dare threaten my mother." Percy growled.

"Yes, but so am I, and I'll defend her word," Athena glared at him. "She speaks the truth. Her son is not a servant who fetches things. God or not, this isn't your place!"

**"Why don't you go back and get it yourself?"**

**The fire in his eye sockets glowed a little hotter.**

**"Why don't I turn you into a prairie dog and run you over with my Harley? Because I don't feel like it.**

"Try it, and then I'll turn you into a boar and hunt you down," Artemis glared at him.

**A god is giving you an opportunity to prove yourself, Percy Jackson. Will you prove yourself a coward?" He leaned forward. "Or maybe you only fight when there's a river to dive into, so your daddy can protect you."**

"He's trying to provoke him," Thalia said.

"Yup, and it's working," Grover added.

**I wanted to punch this guy, but somehow, I knew he was waiting for that. Ares's power was causing my anger. He'd love it if I attacked. I didn't want to give him the satisfaction.**

"Good," Jason said. "He's holding back."

**"We're not interested," I said. "We've already got a quest."**

**Ares's fiery eyes made me see things I didn't want to see—blood and smoke and corpses on the battlefield. "I know all about your quest, punk. When that **_**item **_**was first stolen, Zeus sent his best out looking for it: Apollo, Athena, Artemis, and me, naturally. **

"Naturally," Apollo, Athena, and Artemis repeated.

**If I couldn't sniff out a weapon that powerful ..." He licked his lips, as if the very thought of the master bolt made him hungry. "Well ... if I couldn't find it, you got no hope. Nevertheless, I'm trying to give you the benefit of the doubt. Your dad and I go way back. After all, I'm the one who told him my suspicions about old Corpse Breath."**

"I knew there was a reason why I hated you," Hades glared at Ares.

**"You told him Hades stole the bolt?"**

**"Sure. Framing somebody to start a war. Oldest trick in the book. I recognized it immediately.**

Nico glared at Ares. "Or maybe it was one of your stupid children, who constantly love war and fighting."

Ares shot up off his throne. "Say it again punk, and I'll bury you 5 feet in the ground."

Nico, who was feeling all the same feelings Percy felt when he first met the war god, pulled out his sword, but an attack never came.

Hades, appeared out of thin air between the two and landed a fierce punch in Ares's face which sent him flying back into his throne.

"Threaten my son again and we'll see how much you really love war!"

Chris picked up the book before another fight could ensue.

**In a way, you got me to thank for your little quest."**

**"Thanks," I grumbled.**

**"Hey, I'm a generous guy. Just do my little job, and I'll help you on your way. I'll arrange a ride west for you and your friends."**

"That's the only thing you've said that's decent," Hephaestus said.

"Shut it metal face."

**"We're doing fine on our own."**

**"Yeah, right. No money. No wheels. No clue what you're up against. Help me out, and maybe I'll tell you something you need to know. Something about your mom."**

"What could you possibly know?" Poseidon asked.

"Nothing," Athena said. "He knows that's his weak spot."

Hera smiled a little at Percy's relationship with his mom.

_Why can't I have that? _Hera thought.

**"My mom?"**

**He grinned. "That got your attention. The water park is a mile west on Delancy. You can't miss it. Look for the Tunnel of Love ride."**

Ares smirked at Aphrodite who glared at him.

Annabeth on the other hand paled. They were all going to know that she went on the ride with Percy.

**"What interrupted your date?" I asked. "Something scare you off?"**

**Ares bared his teeth, but I'd seen his threatening look before on Clarisse. There was something false about it, almost like he was nervous.**

**"You're lucky you met me, punk, and not one of the other Olympians. They're not as forgiving of rudeness as I am.**

"No, we aren't," Athena agreed. "But clearly you are taunting him. So I'm sure he wouldn't act like that in our presence." She turned to the demigods. "Am I right?"

"Yes." Percy said very quickly knowing he had pissed off a lot of them.

**I'll meet you back here when you're done. Don't disappoint me."**

**After that I must have fainted, or fallen into a trance, because when I opened my eyes again, Ares was gone. I might've thought the conversation had been a dream, but Annabeth and Grover's expressions told me otherwise.**

**"Not good," Grover said. "Ares sought you out, Percy. This is not good."**

**I stared out the window. The motorcycle had disappeared.**

**Did Ares really know something about my mom, or was he just playing with me? Now that he was gone, all the anger had drained out of me. I realized Ares must love to mess with people's emotions. That was his power—cranking up the passions so badly, they clouded your ability to think.**

"Yes, yes I do."

**"It's probably some kind of trick," I said. "Forget Ares. Let's just go."**

**"We can't," Annabeth said. "Look, I hate Ares as much as anybody, but you don't ignore the gods unless you want serious bad fortune. He wasn't kidding about turning you into a rodent."**

"I wouldn't let it happen," Poseidon said.

**I looked down at my cheeseburger, which suddenly didn't seem so appetizing. "Why does he need us?"**

**"Maybe it's a problem that requires brains," Annabeth said. "Ares has strength. That's all he has. Even strength has to bow to wisdom sometimes."**

Ares glared but Athena defended her daughter.

"She's right you know," Athena said.

"Yeah, you are stupid," Aphrodite agreed.

**"But this water park ... he acted almost scared. What would make a war god run away like that?"**

Hephaestus eyes widened. He remembered putting one of his traps in a water park, but could it be that one?

**Annabeth and Grover glanced nervously at each other.**

**Annabeth said, "I'm afraid we'll have to find out."**

**The sun was sinking behind the mountains by the time we found the water park. Judging from the sign, it once had been called WATERLAND, but now some of the letters were smashed out, so it read WAT R A D.**

**The main gate was padlocked and topped with barbed wire. Inside, huge dry waterslides and tubes and pipes curled everywhere, leading to empty pools. Old tickets and advertisements fluttered around the asphalt. With night coming on, the place looked sad and creepy.**

**"If Ares brings his girlfriend here for a date," I said, staring up at the barbed wire, "I'd hate to see what she looks like."**

Aphrodite frowned at Baby Percy but couldn't anymore when he smiled back at her. "You're lucky you're cute, handsome."

**"Percy," Annabeth warned. "Be more respectful."**

**"Why? I thought you hated Ares."**

**"He's still a god. And his girlfriend is very temperamental."**

"I am not," Aphrodite whined. The others looked at her skeptically. "Fine, I am."

**"You don't want to insult her looks," Grover added.**

**"Who is she? Echidna?"**

"Playing it close handsome," Aphrodite frowned again, which earned another beaming smile from Baby Percy. "Damn that smile."

**"No, Aphrodite," Grover said, a little dreamily. "Goddess of love."**

"Sounds like someone has a crush," Thalia teased.

Aphrodite shot Grover a wink who blushed crimson.

**"I thought she was married to somebody," I said. "Hephaestus."**

Aphrodite looked over at Hephaestus who was looking away from everyone. Hera and Zeus, stared at Ares who was smiling, and felt disgusted with their son.

Leo, who looked at his dad with a worried look, turned to Piper.

"Sorry beauty queen, but that's a little low from your mom," Leo whispered to her.

Piper nodded slowly and looked up at her mom. _That isn't very nice mother._

_I'm sorry. _Aphrodite thought back.

_Sorry doesn't cut it. _Piper thought back. _You are the goddess of love, not lust, what could you possibly see in Ares._

Aphrodite thought about it but didn't answer her. She just pondered her thoughts as Chris read.

**"What's your point?" he asked.**

**"Oh." I suddenly felt the need to change the subject. "So how do we get in?"**

_**"Maia!" **_**Grover's shoes sprouted wings.**

**He flew over the fence, did an unintended somersault in midair, then stumbled to a landing on the opposite side. He dusted off his jeans, as if he'd planned the whole thing. "You guys coming?"**

**Annabeth and I had to climb the old-fashioned way, holding down the barbed wire for each other as we crawled over the top.**

**The shadows grew long as we walked through the park, checking out the attractions. There was Ankle Biter Island, Head Over Wedgie, and Dude, Where's My Swimsuit?**

**No monsters came to get us. Nothing made the slightest noise.**

"That's good," Poseidon said. "Let's keep it that way."

**We found a souvenir shop that had been left open. Merchandise still lined the shelves: snow globes, pencils, postcards, and racks of—**

**"Clothes," Annabeth said. "Fresh clothes."**

**"Yeah," I said. "But you can't just—"**

**"Watch me."**

The Stolls, and even Chris who looked up from the book, smiled at Annabeth.

**She snatched an entire row of stuff of the racks and disappeared into the changing room. A few minutes later she came out in Waterland flower-print shorts, a big red Waterland T-shirt, and commemorative Waterland surf shoes. A Waterland backpack was slung over her shoulder, obviously stuffed with more goodies.**

**"What the heck." Grover shrugged. Soon, all three of us were decked out like walking advertisements for the defunct theme park.**

**We continued searching for the Tunnel of Love.**

**I got the feeling that the whole park was holding its breath. "So Ares and Aphrodite," I said, to keep my mind off the growing dark, "they have a thing going?"**

"Not anymore," Aphrodite glared at him.

"But I thought you were−"

"Not anymore," Aphrodite repeated coldly.

**"That's old gossip, Percy," Annabeth told me. "Three-thousand-year-old gossip."**

**"What about Aphrodite's husband?"**

Aphrodite looked over and yet again, Hephaestus was looking away.

**"Well, you know," she said. "Hephaestus. The black smith. He was crippled when he was a baby, thrown off Mount Olympus by Zeus.**

"Lies," Zeus said. He turned to Hera. "That was all you my dear."

The demigods stared at Hera as she turned to Hephaestus.

"Um…I'm sorry," She said quietly.

Hephaestus grunted an okay but it was Ares who spoke up.

"He's a freak, I'd throw him off too."

"Shut your mouth," Aphrodite seethed. "Don't talk about my husband like that."

A wave of energy shot off from Aphrodite and Hephaestus was the target. His slightly lowered shoulder shifted up and aligned itself perfectly with his other.

**So he isn't exactly handsome. Clever with his hands, and all, but Aphrodite isn't into brains and talent, you know?"**

Annabeth shot Aphrodite a 'sorry', but the Goddess of Love was smiling at the chemistry of Annabeth and Percy.

**"She likes bikers."**

**"Whatever."**

**"Hephaestus knows?"**

"Unfortunately," He grumbled quietly.

**"Oh sure," Annabeth said. "He caught them together once. I mean, literally caught them, in a golden net, and invited all the gods to come and laugh at them. Hephaestus is always trying to embarrass them. That's why they meet in out-of-the-way places, like ..."**

"Yeah but we out smart you." Ares smiled at his brother.

"I'm sorry, do you still have a girlfriend," Aphrodite shot back.

**She stopped, looking straight ahead. "Like that."**

**In front of us was an empty pool that would've been awesome for skateboarding. It was at least fifty yards across and shaped like a bowl.**

**Around the rim, a dozen bronze statues of Cupid stood guard with wings spread and bows ready to fire. On the opposite side from us, a tunnel opened up, probably where the water flowed into when the pool was full. The sign above it read, THRILL RIDE O' LOVE: THIS IS NOT YOUR PARENTS' TUNNEL OF LOVE!**

**Grover crept toward the edge. "Guys, look."**

**Marooned at the bottom of the pool was a pink-and-white two-seater boat with a canopy over the top and little hearts painted all over it. In the left seat, glinting in the fading light, was Ares's shield, a polished circle of bronze.**

"For a shield," Artemis scoffed. "You must have tons."

**"This is too easy," I said. "So we just walk down there and get it?"**

**Annabeth ran her fingers along the base of the nearest Cupid statue.**

**"There's a Greek letter carved here," she said. "Eta. I wonder ..."**

"H," Hephaestus said. "Yup, that's mine."

"What's it do dad," Leo asked.

"You'll see."

_Nearly scared me to death, but you'll see. _Annabeth thought. Percy rubbed her shoulder comforting her.

**"Grover," I said, "you smell any monsters?"**

**He sniffed the wind. "Nothing."**

**"Nothing—like, in-the-Arch-and-you-didn't-smell-Echidna nothing, or really nothing?"**

"Oh, friendship quarrel," Travis said.

**Grover looked hurt. "I told you, that was underground."**

"No excuses if you want your license," Dionysus said.

"You will give him his license." Athena said.

**"Okay, I'm sorry." I took a deep breath. "I'm going down there."**

**"I'll go with you." Grover** **didn't sound too enthusiastic, but I got the feeling he was trying to make up for what had happened in St. Louis.**

"I was," Grover said.

"No need my boy," Chiron ensured him. "You made it out alive, that is all that matter."

**"No," I told him. "I want you to stay up top with the flying shoes. You're the Red Baron, a flying ace, remember? I'll be counting on you for backup, in case something goes wrong."**

Way to jinx it Perce," Nico shook his head.

"He's been doing that for quite awhile now, wouldn't expect anything less," Thalia said.

"Hey!"

**Grover puffed up his chest a little. "Sure. But what could go wrong?"**

**"I don't know. Just a feeling. Annabeth, come with me—"**

Aphrodite squealed and forgot her depressed mood instantly.

**"Are you kidding?" She looked at me as if I'd just dropped from the moon. Her cheeks were bright red.**

"What's wrong Annie, nervous," Thalia teased.

"So much blackmail it's unbelievable," Conner said.

"Shut it, both of you," Annabeth said. Percy was trying not blush.

**"What's the problem now?" I demanded.**

**"Me, go with you to the ... the 'Thrill Ride of Love'? How embarrassing is that? What if somebody saw me?"**

"And you call yourself a child of Athena," Rachel laughed. "Who the heck is going to see you?"

Annabeth blushed and realized how stupid she sounded as a kid.

"This is so romantic," Aphrodite gushed.

**"Who's going to see you?" But my face was burning now, too. Leave it to a girl to make everything complicated.**

"He has a point," Jason said.

"Why's that," Piper glared at him.

"Uh….Leo help," Jason whispered.

"You're on your on bud."

"I mean, um, you know, sometimes you guys…uh," Jason stammered. "Never mind, I was wrong."

"That's what I thought," Piper smiled smugly.

_Gods he's whipped. _Leo thought with a smile on his face.

**"Fine," I told her. "I'll do it myself." But when I started down the side of the pool, she followed me, muttering about how boys always messed things up.**

"Oh I get it," Aphrodite said. "She thought she liked Luke, but then handsome Percy comes along and then she has no clue because now she thinks that Percy is better than Luke."

"How does it always come back to love?" Athena asked.

"Just does hunch."

Annabeth, who had blushed as Aphrodite's comments looked at Percy.

**We reached the boat. The shield was propped on one seat, and next to it was a lady's silk scarf. I tried to imagine Ares and Aphrodite here, a couple of gods meeting in a junked-out amusement-park ride. Why? Then I noticed something I hadn't seen from up top: mirrors all the way around the rim of the pool, facing this spot. We could see ourselves no matter which direction we looked. That must be it. While Ares and Aphrodite were smooching with each other they could look at their favorite people: themselves.**

"Well I do love myself the most," Aphrodite smiled.

**I picked up the scarf. It shimmered pink, and the perfume was indescribable—rose, or mountain laurel. Something good. I smiled, a little dreamy, and was about to rub the scarf against my cheek when Annabeth ripped it out of my hand and stuffed it in her pocket. "Oh, no you don't. Stay away from that love magic."**

"Now why would you do that!" Aphrodite said a little amused. "Do you have idea what would have happened?"

"He probably would have fallen in deep love with Annabeth the second he looked at her," Artemis summed up. "Right?"

"Exactly!"

Annabeth and Percy were blushing crimson.

**"What?"**

**"Just get the shield, Seaweed Brain, and let's get out of here."**

**The moment I touched the shield, I knew we were in trouble. My hand broke through something that had been connecting it to the dashboard. A cobweb,** **I thought, but then I looked at a strand of it on my palm and saw it was some kind of metal filament, so fine it was almost invisible. A trip wire.**

"Another trap," Apollo looked over at Hephaestus who nodded. "Nice."

**"Wait," Annabeth said.**

**"Too late."**

**"There's another Greek letter on the side of the boat, another Eta. This is a trap."**

**Noise erupted all around us, of a million gears grinding, as if the whole pool were turning into one giant machine.**

"That's crazy," Leo awed. "It was all a set up."

**Grover yelled, "Guys!"**

**Up on the rim, the Cupid statues were drawing their bows into firing position. Before I could suggest taking cover, they shot, but not at us. They fired at each other, across the rim of the pool. Silky cables trailed from the arrows, arcing over the pool and anchoring where they landed to form a huge golden asterisk. Then smaller metallic threads started weaving together magically between the main strands, making a net.**

**"We have to get out," I said.**

**"Duh!" Annabeth said.**

"Not the time to be a smart ass Annabeth," Thalia laughed.

**I grabbed the shield and we ran, but going up the slope of the pool was not as easy as going down.**

**"Come on!" Grover shouted.**

**He was trying to hold open a section of the net for us, but wherever he touched it, the golden threads started to wrap around his hands.**

**The Cupids' heads popped open. Out came video cameras. Spotlights rose up all around the pool, blinding us with illumination, and a loudspeaker voice boomed: "Live to Olympus in one minute ... Fifty-nine seconds, fifty-eight ..."**

"That would be hilarious to see," Apollo smiled.

"I agree," Hermes laughed. "Hey Hephaestus, you should install cameras whenever I'm about to prank someone here on Olympus."

**"Hephaestus!" Annabeth screamed. "I'm so stupid.' Eta is H.' He made this trap to catch his wife with Ares. Now we're going to be broadcast live to Olympus and look like absolute fools!"**

"Well Percy's already a fool," Clarisse said. Percy pulled out his pen and was twirling in his hand. Everybody backed up except Annabeth.

**We'd almost made it to the rim when the row of mirrors opened like hatches and thousands of tiny metallic ... things poured out.**

**Annabeth screamed.**

"Why?" Most asked.

Hephaestus, realizing what they are, looked over at Annabeth with a sympathetic look.

"Sorry."

**It was an army of wind-up creepy-crawlies: bronze-gear bodies, spindly legs, little pincer mouths, all scuttling toward us in a wave of clacking, whirring metal.**

**"Spiders!" Annabeth said. "Sp—sp—aaaah!"**

Athena shuddered at the thought and looked her daughter with wide eyes.

The other demigods wanted to laugh, but they knew how bad Annabeth was when she was scared.

Thalia would hate it if people would laugh at her fear of heights,, so she understood Annabeth's position right now.

Annabeth, who was scared just thinking about it, received a tight hug from Percy who could feel her shaking.

"It's okay, it's okay." Percy whispered in her ear. Annabeth calmed down when she felt Perc's arms wrap aronud her.

**I'd never seen her like this before. She fell backward in terror and almost got overwhelmed by the spider robots before I pulled her up and dragged her back toward the boat.**

**The things were coming out from all around the rim now, millions of them, flooding toward the center of the pool, completely surrounding us. I told myself they probably weren't programmed to kill, just corral us and bite us and make us look stupid. Then again, this was a trap meant for gods. And we weren't gods.**

"He's right," Hephaestus said. "They'd probably hurt a lot more."

**Annabeth and I climbed into the boat.**

**I started kicking away the spiders as they swarmed aboard. I yelled at Annabeth to help me, but she was too paralyzed to do much more than scream.**

Annabeth kept her eyes on Percy so she didn't have to face the concerned looks everyone was giving her.

**"Thirty, twenty-nine," called the loudspeaker.**

**The spiders started spitting out strands of metal thread, trying to tie us down. The strands were easy enough to break at first, but there were so many of them, and the spiders just kept coming. I kicked one away from Annabeth's leg and its pincers took a chunk out of my new surf shoe.**

"They're vicious," Conner concluded. He turned to Travis. "Scratch them out, will end up killing someone."

Travis groaned, but scratched out something from his note pad.

**Grover hovered above the pool in his flying sneakers, trying to pull the net loose, but it wouldn't budge.**

**Think, I told myself. Think.**

"Don't hurt yourself," Nico laughed.

**The Tunnel of Love entrance was under the net. We could use it as an exit, except that it was blocked by a million robot spiders.**

**"Fifteen, fourteen," the loudspeaker called.**

**Water, I thought. Where does the ride's water come from?**

**Then I saw them: huge water pipes behind the mirrors, where the spiders had come from. And up above the net, next to one of the Cupids, a glass-windowed booth that must be the controller's station.**

**"Grover!" I yelled. "Get into that booth! Find the 'on' switch!"**

**"But—"**

**"Do it!" It was a crazy hope, but it was our only chance. The spiders were all over the prow of the boat now. Annabeth was screaming her head off. I had to get us out of there.**

Annabeth felt a little shamed for being so useless, but Percy patted her back gently.

**Grover was in the controller's booth now, slamming away at the buttons.**

**"Five, four—"**

**Grover looked up at me hopelessly, raising his hands. He was letting me know that he'd pushed every button, but still nothing was happening.**

**I closed my eyes and thought about waves, rushing water, the Mississippi River. I felt a familiar tug in my gut. I tried to imagine that I was dragging the ocean all the way to Denver.**

"This is going to be bad," Poseidon said grimly.

**"Two, one, **_**zero**_**!"**

**Water exploded out of the pipes. It roared into the pool, sweeping away the spiders. I pulled Annabeth into the seat next to me and fastened her seat belt just as the tidal wave slammed into our boat, over the top, whisking the spiders away and dousing us completely, but not capsizing us. The boat turned, lifted in the flood, and spun in circles around the whirlpool.**

**The water was full of short-circuiting spiders, some of them smashing against the pool's concrete wall with such force they burst.**

**Spotlights glared down at us. The Cupid-cams were rolling, live to Olympus.**

"I wonder what it looks like," Apollo said to no one in particular.

"A huge wave destroying everything," Poseidon summed up.

**But I could only concentrate on controlling the boat. I willed it to ride the current, to keep away from the wall. Maybe it was my imagination, but the boat seemed to respond. **

"It wasn't," Percy said.

"He controls boats?" Piper asked.

"Yes," Chiron answered. "Percy has perfect bearings at Sea. That's why he'd be perfect for the Argo II."

Piper smirked at Leo. "Guess you aren't the captain anymore."

"You're so cruel," Leo faked hurt.

**At least, it didn't break into a million pieces. We spun around one last time, the water level now almost high enough to shred us against the metal net. Then the boat's nose turned toward the tunnel and we rocketed through into the darkness.**

**Annabeth and I held tight,**

Most shot Annabeth a look and laughed when they realized that both of them were hanging on tight to each other now, only slightly different.

"I'm going to let this one go," Athena said. "Only because I know your fear."

**both of us screaming as the boat shot curls and hugged corners and took forty-five-degree plunges past pictures of Romeo and Juliet and a bunch of other Valentine's Day stuff.**

**Then we were out of the tunnel, the night air whistling through our hair as the boat barreled straight toward the exit.**

**If the ride had been in working order, we would've sailed off a ramp between the golden Gates of Love and splashed down safely in the exit pool. But there was a problem. The Gates of Love were chained. Two boats that had been washed out of the tunnel before us were now piled against the barricade—one submerged, the other cracked in half.**

"Great," Poseidon muttered. "You're going to get squashed.

**"Unfasten your seat belt," I yelled to Annabeth.**

**"Are you crazy?"**

"Yup!" _But I love your crazyness_.

**"Unless you want to get smashed to death." I strapped Ares's shield to my arm. "We're going to have to jump for it." My idea was simple and insane. As the boat struck, we would use its force like a springboard to jump the gate. I'd heard of people surviving car crashes that way, getting thrown thirty or forty feet away from an accident. With luck, we would land in the pool.**

"That's insane," Most yelled.

"The people who survive that probably end up with broken bones," Athena groaned. "How are you supposed to finish the quest with a broken arm?"

**Annabeth seemed to understand. She gripped my hand as the gates got closer.**

**"On my mark," I said.**

**"No! On my mark!"**

"Are you really going to fight with him now?" Thalia asked.

"I had to, he was going to kill us," She complained.

"He's always like that," Rachel added.

"Good point."

"Am I not sitting right here? Percy mumbled.

**"What?"**

**"Simple physics!" she yelled. "Force times the trajectory angle—"**

"Really Annabeth, we're already reading," Conner whined. "I think we've suffered enough without math being included."

**"Fine.'" I shouted. "On **_**your **_**mark!"**

"Good," Annabeth smiled down at Percy. "The more you listen to me, the better chance you have at staying alive."

Percy nodded hastily as if his life depended on it.

_At least she keeps him safe._ Sally thought.

**She hesitated ... hesitated ... then yelled, "Now!"**

_**Crack!**_

**Annabeth was right. If we'd jumped when I thought we should've, we would've crashed into the gates. She got us maximum lift.**

Athena smiled proudly at her daughter.

"Thank you Annabeth," Sally smiled at her.

**Unfortunately, that was a little more than we needed. Our boat smashed into the pileup and we were thrown into the air, straight over the gates, over the pool, and down toward solid asphalt.**

**Something grabbed me from behind.**

**Annabeth yelled, "Ouch!"**

**Grover!**

"Go Grover," The demigods cheered as he blushed.

**In midair, he had grabbed me by the shirt, and Annabeth by the arm, and was trying to pull us out of a crash landing, but Annabeth and I had all the momentum.**

**"You're too heavy!" Grover said. "We're going down!"**

"Are you calling me fat?" Annabeth joked.

"What!" Grover squealed. "Of course not."

"Yeah," Travis defended him. "He's calling Percy that."

"Watch it,"

**We spiraled toward the ground, Grover doing his best to slow the fall.**

**We smashed into a photo-board, Grover's head going straight into the hole where tourists would put their faces, pretending to be Noo-Noo the Friendly Whale. Annabeth and I tumbled to the ground, banged up but alive. Ares's shield was still on my arm.**

**Once we caught our breath, Annabeth and I got Grover out of the photo-board and thanked him for saving our lives. I looked back at the Thrill Ride of Love. The water was subsiding. Our boat had been smashed to pieces against the gates.**

"At least you're alright," Chiron said.

**A hundred yards away, at the entrance pool, the Cupids were still filming.**

"I bet it looked awesome!" Apollo and Hermes cheered.

**The statues had swiveled so that their cameras were trained straight on us, the spotlights in our faces.**

**"Show's over!" I yelled. "Thank you! Good night!"**

"Only he would sign off," Thalia shook her head.

**The Cupids turned back to their original positions. The lights shut off. The park went quiet and dark again, except for the gentle trickle of water into the Thrill Ride of Love's exit pool. I wondered if Olympus had gone to a commercial break, or if our ratings had been any good.**

"I bet it was," Apollo said. "Waves, crashes, tiny spiders, it's all awesome."

**I hated being teased.**

"That he does," Grover said.

"Yeah," Conner agreed. "We barely do it to him because he comes after us with riptide." Percy had pulled out riptide and was smirking evily.

"The only person he doesn't go after is Annabeth." Travis whispered.

"But that's because he's to busy making out with her."

"What did you say?" Percy appeared behind them.

**I hated being tricked. And I had plenty of experience handling bullies who liked to do that stuff to me. I hefted the shield on my arm and turned to my friends. "We need to have a little talk with Ares."**

"Don't like the tone punk," Ares grumbled.

"Well we don't like you," Athena shot back. "You nearly killed them because you were a coward. Next time you risk my daughter's life, I'll send you to Hades!"

"Whatever," He grumbled. "Who's next, this is getting boring."

"I'll read," Katie said.


	23. Chapter 23

Het guys! I know you think this is a chapter, but it's not. Sorry. I won't really have time to update till about next week. I'll try my best to get you a chapter ASAP. I love you guys.

PLKA out


	24. Vegas and kisses

Hey guys! I know I haven't updated in a while. Well, I had some time so I updated. Enjoy! Cookies to all who reviewed. (::) (::) (::) (::) There Sally's blue chocolate chips!

* * *

"**We Take a Zebra to Vegas," **Katie read.

Conner turned to Chiron. "Now do you think we shouldn't have a zoo?"

"Idiot, quit the zoo before I gut you," Clarisse snapped.

**The war god was waiting for us in the diner parking lot.**

**"Well, well," he said. "You didn't get yourself killed."**

"Thanks for the vote in confidence," Percy mumbled.

**"You knew it was a trap," I said.**

**Ares gave me a wicked grin. "Bet that crippled black smith was surprised when he netted a couple of stupid kids. **

"I'm smarter then you," Annabeth shouted. "We're all smarter then you!"

"Watch the mouth Barbie," Ares snapped. He turned to Athena. "She may be your daughter, but when it comes to a fight, I'll win."

Percy glared. "Do you want to test the theory?

Ares shut up immediatly.

**You looked good on TV."**

**I shoved his shield at him. "You're a jerk."**

"Kid sees sense," Athena nodded in approval.

Ares held back as he watched most gods stare at him.

**Annabeth and Grover caught their breath.**

"I he dead man?'' Leo asked. He had forgotten that Percy was with them.

"I'm right here."

**Ares grabbed the shield and spun it in the air like pizza dough. It changed form, melting into a bulletproof vest. He slung it across his back.**

**"See that truck over there?" He pointed to an eighteen-wheeler parked across the street from the diner. "That's your ride. Take you straight to L.A., with one stop in Vegas."**

"Vegas! The party ponies in Vegas are AWESOME!" Apollo yelled.

**The eighteen-wheeler had a sign on the back, which I could read only because it was reverse-printed white on black, a good combination for dyslexia: KINDNESS INTERNATIONAL: HUMANE ZOO TRANSPORT. WARNING: LIVE WILD ANIMALS.**

**I said, "You're kidding."**

**Ares snapped his fingers. The back door of the truck unlatched. "Free ride west, punk. Stop complaining. And here's a little something for doing the job."**

"Ah, the gifts," Athena said. The other gods looked confused, as did some demigods. "Well, the spirit in the Mississippi river mentioned gifts that shouldn't be trusted."

"Ah," Poseidon nodded. He turned to Ares. "She better be wrong!"

Percy and Annabeth both shared a look.

**He slung a blue nylon backpack off his handlebars and tossed it to me.**

**Inside were fresh clothes for all of us, twenty bucks in cash, a pouch full of golden drachmas, and a bag of Double Stuff Oreos.**

"It's the Oreos," Travis shouted. "DON'T TRUST THEM!"

"Moron, how could it be the Oreos," Thalia shot back.

"Simple," Conner answered. "It's the least expected item to suspect. If I learned one thing from pranks, is that never be predictable and obvious. The Oreos are definitely stuffed with something." He turned to Ares. "What is it? Laxative?"

"That's gross," Rachel gagged.

"That's life," Travis said.

**I said, "I don't want your lousy—"**

**"Thank you, Lord Ares," Grover interrupted, giving me his best red-alert warning look. "Thanks a lot."**

"Satyr's smart," Ares grunted.

"Satyr's scared," Thalia laughed at Grover.

"Oh, and you wouldn't be," Grover eyed the others. They all turned away, even Clarisse. "See, you're all smart, only Percy's crazy."

Percy spun his head at Grover and glared, and before Grover could apologize, a water ball smacked his head.

"Percy," Grover mumbled.

"Nice shot Seaweed Brain," Annabeth snickered. Percy smiled at his girlfriend.

**I gritted my teeth. It was probably a deadly insult to refuse something from a god, but I didn't want anything that Ares had touched. Reluctantly, I slung the backpack over my shoulder. I knew my anger was being caused by the war god's presence, but I was still itching to punch him in the nose. He reminded me of every bully I'd ever faced: Nancy Bobofit, Clarisse, Smelly Gabe, sarcastic teachers—every jerk who'd called me stupid in school or laughed at me when I'd gotten expelled.**

"I'd like to meet them," Nico gripped his sword.

"Don't worry about it Perce," Conner said. "Take the expulsions as a good thing. Kinda like a streak."

"But a good one," Travis added. Annabeth shook her ead.

**I looked back at the diner, which had only a couple of customers now. The waitress who'd served us dinner was watching nervously out the window, like she was afraid Ares might hurt us. She dragged the fry cook out from the kitchen to see. She said something to him. He nodded, held up a little disposable camera and snapped a picture of us.**

**Great, I thought. We'll make the papers again tomorrow.**

**I imagined the headline: TWELVE-YEAR-OLD OUTLAW BEATS UP DEFENSELESS BIKER.**

"Yeah right," Ares smiled.

**"You owe me one more thing," I told Ares, trying to keep my voice level. "You promised me information about my mother."**

Sally eyed Ares.

**"You sure you can handle the news?" He kickstarted his motorcycle. "She's not dead."**

Poseidon sighed in relief and most looked at Sally with smiles.

**The ground seemed to spin beneath me. "What do you mean?"**

**"I mean she was taken away from the Minotaur before she could die. She was turned into a shower of gold, right? That's metamorphosis. Not death. She's being kept."**

The stares turned to Hades who put his helm of darkness on to escape the dirty looks he was receiving.

**"Kept. Why?"**

**"You need to study war, punk. Hostages. You take somebody to control somebody else."**

'Are you happy death breath," Demeter shouted.

"How am I supposed to know," Hades yelled back invisible. "It hasn't happened yet!"

**"Nobody's controlling me."**

**He laughed. "Oh yeah? See you around, kid."**

**I balled up my fists. "You're pretty smug, Lord Ares, for a guy who runs from Cupid statues."**

"Watch our mouth boy."

**Behind his sunglasses, fire glowed. I felt a hot wind in my hair. "We'll meet again, Percy Jackson. Next time you're in a fight, watch your back."**

"Watch yours," Annabeth whispered.

"You know," Apollo said. "I don't like you threatening my little cousin."

"Yeah well I don't like your−" Ares began but looked over at Artemis who was holding a dagger in hand. "Never mind."

**He revved his Harley, then roared off down Delancy Street.**

**Annabeth said, "That was not smart, Percy."**

"Yeah Seaweed Brain," Thalia teased Percy. "Always listen to Annabeth."

"So should you PineCone Face."

**"I don't care."**

**"You don't want a god as your enemy. Especially not that god."**

"I've had worse."

**"Hey, guys," Grover said. "I hate to interrupt, but ..."**

**He pointed toward the diner. At the register, the last two customers were paying their check, two men in identical black coveralls, with a white logo on their backs that matched the one on the KINDNESS INTERNATIONAL truck.**

**"If we're taking the zoo express," Grover said, "we need to hurry."**

**I didn't like it, but we had no better option. Besides, I'd seen enough of Denver.**

"Vegas baby," Conner cheered. "Oh, what about a casino?"

"NO!"

**We ran across the street and climbed in the back of the big rig, closing the doors behind us.**

**The first thing that hit me was the smell. It was like the world's biggest pan of kitty litter.**

"That's gross," Chris said.

**The trailer was dark inside until I uncapped Anaklusmos. The blade cast a faint bronze light over a very sad scene. Sitting in a row of filthy metal cages were three of the most pathetic zoo animals I'd ever beheld: a zebra, a male albino lion, and some weird antelope thing I didn't know the name for.**

**Someone had thrown the lion a sack of turnips, which he obviously didn't want to eat. The zebra and the antelope had each gotten a Styrofoam tray of hamburger meat. The zebra's mane was matted with chewing gum, like somebody had been spitting on it in their spare time. The antelope had a stupid silver birthday balloon tied to one of his horns that read OVER THE HILL!**

"That's just cruel," Rachel said disgusted.

"The animals should be running in the wild," Artemis said annoyed.

"So you could hunt them down?" Apollo snickered. "I'd bet they love that."

**Apparently, nobody had wanted to get close enough to the lion to mess with him, but the poor thing was pacing around on soiled blankets, in a space way too small for him, panting from the stuffy heat of the trailer. He had flies buzzing around his pink eyes and his ribs showed through his white fur.**

"It was horrible," Grover shivered.

**"This is kindness?" Grover yelled. "Humane zoo transport?"**

**He probably would've gone right back outside to beat up the truckers with his reed pipes, and I would've helped him, but just then the trucks engine roared to life, the trailer started shaking, and we were forced to sit down or fall down.**

"I would have," Grover mumbled.

"Alright Grover," Thalia laughed. "Look at you; being mean and all, I like it."

"Mean huh," Leo whispered. He turned to Will and grabbed his bow.

Will's bow was split in two while Leo tossed the remains in front of Thalia.

"Woops," He shrugged innocently.

"Ass," Thalia turned to him. "Why are you so mean!"

"Uh..but…you…um," Leo stuttered and turned to Will. "I'll fix it."

"Better," Percy smiled.

"Or Thalia will kick you all the way to Pluto."

**We huddled in the corner on some mildewed feed sacks, trying to ignore the smell and the heat and the flies. Grover talked to the animals in a series of goat bleats, but they just stared at him sadly. Annabeth was in favor of breaking the cages and freeing them on the spot, but I pointed out it wouldn't do much good until the truck stopped moving. Besides, I had a feeling we might look a lot better to the lion than those turnips.**

"Good point," Chris said. He turned to Annabeth. "You did realize that right?"

"Yeah," Annabeth said glumly. "I was just pissed."

**I found a water jug and refilled their bowls, then used Anaklusmos to drag the mismatched food out of their cages. I gave the meat to the lion and the turnips to the zebra and the antelope.**

**Grover calmed the antelope down, while Annabeth used her knife to cut the balloon off his horn. She wanted to cut the gum out of the zebra's mane, too, but we decided that would be too risky with the truck bumping around. We told Grover to promise the animals we'd help them more in the morning, then we settled in for night.**

**Grover curled up on a turnip sack; Annabeth opened our bag of Double Stuf Oreos and nibbled on one halfheartedly; **

"They weren't evil after all," Conner said surprised.

**I tried to cheer myself up by concentrating on the fact that we were halfway to Los Angeles. Halfway to our destination. It was only June fourteenth. The solstice wasn't until the twenty-first. We could make it in plenty of time.**

**On the other hand, I had no idea what to expect next. The gods kept toying with me. At least Hephaestus had the decency to be honest about it—he'd put up cameras and advertised me as entertainment. **

"Well the boy likes me," Hephaestus smiled.

**But even when the cameras weren't rolling, I had a feeling my quest was being watched. I was a source of amusement for the gods.**

"That's not…" Aphrodite started but giggled. "It's true, but look at him."

She pointed at Baby Percy who was now trying to lick his elbow. "He's freaking adorable."

"He does now that's impossible right?" Artemis asked.

"It is?" Apollo turned to her.

Needless to say, Apollo spent the next couple minutes trying to do it.

**"Hey," Annabeth said, "I'm sorry for freaking out back at the water park, Percy."**

**"That's okay."**

**"It's just..." She shuddered. "Spiders."**

**"Because of the Arachne story," I guessed. "She got turned into a spider for challenging your mom to a weaving contest, right?"**

"Weaving," Dionysus muttered. "At least make it a good challenge."

**Annabeth nodded. "Arachne's children have been taking revenge on the children of Athena ever since. If there's a spider within a mile of me, it'll find me. I hate the creepy little things. Anyway, I owe you."**

"A mile?" Rachel asked. "That sucks."

"You have no idea," Ananebeth shuddered.

**"We're a team, remember?" I said. "Besides, Grover did the fancy flying."**

**I thought he was asleep, but he mumbled from the corner, "I was pretty amazing, wasn't I?"**

"Eavesdropping?" Nico asked.

"Oh come on, we were in the back of a truck with nothing to do," Grover said. "What else was I supposed to do?"

"Work on your music," Travis suggested.

"Travis," Conner snapped at his brother, and Grover smiled. "Why put the animals through that."

Travis snickered while Grover's smile disappeared.

**Annabeth and I laughed.**

**She pulled apart an Oreo, handed me half. "In the Iris message ... did Luke really say nothing?"**

"Curious?" Thalia teased.

**I munched my cookie and thought about how to answer. The conversation via rainbow had bothered me all evening. "Luke said you and he go way back. He also said Grover wouldn't fail this time. Nobody would turn into a pine tree."**

Zeus eyed Grover. _Did he?_

Grover on the other hand, felt a little ashamed and a little mad too. _Thanks for the support Luke!_

**In the dim bronze light of the sword blade, it was hard to read their expressions.**

**Grover let out a mournful bray.**

**"I should've told you the truth from the beginning." His voice trembled. "I thought if you knew what a failure I was, you wouldn't want me along."**

"You aren't a failure," Percy pushed.

**"You were the satyr who tried to rescue Thalia, the daughter of Zeus."**

**He nodded glumly.**

Zeus glared at Grover. "So you had my daughter killed."

"DAD," Thalia and Jason shouted.

"Peace brother," Poseidon said. "You brought this upon yourself. What was one satyr supposed to do against a handful of monsters?"

"Easy for you," Zeus glared at him. "You're son wasn't a tree."

"Right," Poseidon shot back. "My son is just being hunted by you and Hades and recently lost his mother, please, stop me if my sons life is so good right now!"

"Quite, both of you," Hera snapped. "Your daughters fine, what's the issue?"

"The issue is that my daughter lost years of her life," Zeus stated.

"That I chose to lose," Thalia shouted. "My decision, not Grover's, not yours, not anyone's, just mine!"

"Could we please read," Hestia asked. "The constant yelling and fighting isn't going to change anything."

"She's right," Demeter smiled at her sister and then turned to Katie. "Please continue daughter."

**"And the other two half-bloods Thalia befriended, the ones who got safely to camp ..." I looked at Annabeth. "That was you and Luke, wasn't it?"**

"Yup," Annabeth, Thalia, and Grover said.

**She put down her Oreo, uneaten. "Like you said, Percy, a seven-year-old half-blood wouldn't have made it very far alone. Athena guided me toward help. Thalia was twelve. Luke was fourteen. They'd both run away from home, like me. They were happy to take me with them. They were ... amazing monster-fighters, even without training. We traveled north from Virginia without any real plans, fending off monsters for about two weeks before Grover found us."**

"Thanks for the compliment," Thalia smiled at Annabeth.

"Why'd you run away!" Zeus interrupted.

Thalia eyed Jason, and realized how everything was connected somehow, but left it alone.

"You'll see sooner or later."

**"I was supposed to escort Thalia to camp," he said, sniffling. "Only Thalia. I had strict orders from Chiron: don't do anything that would slow down the rescue. We knew Hades was after her, see, but I couldn't just leave Luke and Annabeth by themselves. I thought ... I thought I could lead all three of them to safety. It was my fault the Kindly Ones caught up with us. I froze. I got scared on the way back to camp and took some wrong turns. If I'd just been a little quicker …"**

"Wow Grover, are you serious right now!" Thalia turned to him. "It was not your fault, nothing was."

"If you hadn't died, then maybe Luke would have…"

"Enough," Annabeth shouted. "We're fine, we're happy, and nothing is going to ruin that."

"But−"

"But nothing," Thalia said. "Please continue Katie."

**"Stop it," Annabeth said. "No one blames you. Thalia didn't blame you either."**

**"She sacrificed herself to save us," he said miserably, "Her death was my fault. The Council of Cloven Elders said so."**

"They're idiots," Annabeth said.

"She's right," Dionysus grumbled. Percy just stared in shock at Dionysus.

**"Because you wouldn't leave two other half-bloods behind?" I said. "That's not fair."**

**"Percy's right," Annabeth said. "I wouldn't be here today if it weren't for you, Grover. Neither would Luke. We don't care what the council says."**

"Thank you Grover," Athena smiled at him.

"Yeah thanks bud," Hermes smirked at him.

**Grover kept sniffling in the dark. "It's just my luck. I'm the lamest satyr ever, and I find the two most powerful half-bloods of the century, Thalia and Percy."**

"HEY," Most demigods screamed.

Zeus and Poseidon smiled down at their children while Percy and Thalia smirked.

"Here that Seaweed Brain, we're the most powerful,"

"No shit sherlock."

"Language!"

"If they're the most powerful, we're in there too right," Jason asked Grover while motioning to himself and Nico.

"Afraid not," Grover said. "Maybe you guys could fit Thalia, but not Perce, he's in a league of his own."

"Damn right I am."

_Kid has everything. _Jason thought a little jealous, but then realized how stupid he was being. _At least he's on my side and not a jerk._

**"You're not lame," Annabeth insisted. "You've got more courage than any satyr I've ever met. Name one other who would dare go to the Underworld. I bet Percy is really glad you're here right now."**

**She kicked me in the shin.**

"Nice," The Stolls laughed.

**"Yeah," I said, which I would've done even without the kick.**

"Sorry," Annabeth smiled at Percy who had just rubbed his shin remebering the memory.

**"It's not luck that you found Thalia and me, Grover. You've got the biggest heart of any satyr ever. You're a natural searcher. That's why you'll be the one who finds Pan."**

"Thanks Perce," Grover smiled, knowing he was right.

Sally smiled at her son's thoughtfulness.

"You have an amazing heart," Hestia said to Percy.

"He does," Aphrodite sniffled. "He's making me cry." Percy was blushing madly.

**I heard a deep, satisfied sigh. I waited for Grover to say something, but his breathing only got heavier. When the sound turned to snoring, I realized he'd fallen sleep.**

"Really Grover?" Will looked over at him. "How'd you manage that?"

"I have no clue."

**"How does he do that?" I marveled.**

**"I don't know," Annabeth said. "But that was really a nice thing you told him."**

**"I meant it."**

**We rode in silence for a few miles, bumping around on the feed sacks. The zebra munched a turnip. The lion licked the last of the hamburger meat off his lips and looked at me hopefully.**

**Annabeth rubbed her necklace like she was thinking deep, strategic thoughts.**

"I always see you doing that," Piper said.

"Old habit," Annabeth explained.

**"That pine-tree bead," I said. "Is that from your first year?"**

**She looked. She hadn't realized what she was doing.**

**"Yeah," she said. "Every August, the counselors pick the most important event of the summer, and they paint it on that year's beads. I've got Thalia's pine tree, a Greek trireme on fire, a centaur in a prom dress—now **_**that **_**was a weird summer..."**

**"And the college ring is your father's?"**

**"That's none of your—" She stopped herself. "Yeah. Yeah, it is."**

"Wow, you actually restrained yourself," Thalia looked at Annabeth. "Not bad."

"He was just trying to help," Annabeth explained.

"And because she loves him." Thalia whispered to Nico. Nico was snickering when he was doused with water.

**"You don't have to tell me."**

**"No ... it's okay." She took a shaky breath. "My dad sent it to me folded up in a letter, two summers ago. The ring was, like, his main keepsake from Athena. He wouldn't have gotten through his doctoral program at Harvard without her... That's a long story. Anyway, he said he wanted me to have it. He apologized for being a jerk, said he loved me and missed me. He wanted me to come home and live with him."**

"That sounds nice," Rachel said. "What's the problem?"

"Read on," Annabeth answered.

**"That doesn't sound so bad."**

**"Yeah, well... the problem was, I believed him. I tried to go home for that school year, but my stepmom was the same as ever. She didn't want her kids put in danger by living with a freak. Monsters attacked. We argued. Monsters attacked. We argued. I didn't even make it through winter break. I called Chiron and came right back to Camp Half-Blood."**

Athena glared at nothing in particular. "Stupid mortal." Percy rubbed her arm comfortingly and Annabeth

**"You think you'll ever try living with your dad again?"**

**She wouldn't meet my eyes. "Please. I'm not into self-inflicted pain."**

**"You shouldn't give up," I told her. "You should write him a letter or something."**

**"Thanks for the advice," she said coldly, "but my father's made his choice about who he wants to live with."**

"You shouldn't be mean Annabeth," Rachel said. "He's trying to help."

"I know," She sighed. "But I'm just like that."

**We passed another few miles of silence.**

**"So if the gods fight," I said, "will things line up the way they did with the Trojan War? Will it be Athena versus Poseidon?"**

"Yes, will it," Aphrodite smiled. "It'd be epic, two rivals yet two lovers and…"

"WE AREN'T LOVERS," Both shouted.

Athena glared at Aphrodite while she blushed.

Poseidon, yelled to keep his secret safe.

"Unless you want to be," He asked with a smirk.

"HEY," Zeus shouted.

"Pig," Artemis muttered.

"Player," Apollo cheered.

Athena glared at Poseidon but then thought of something,

She smirked back at him. "You couldn't handle it fish face."

Poseidon and Aphrodite's mouth dropped.

Percy and Annabeth exchanged looks.

"Read before someone blows," Demeter urged.

**She put her head against the backpack Ares had given us, and closed her eyes. "I don't know what my mom will do. I just know I'll fight next to you."**

Athena looked over at Annabeth, while the others snickered. "Why's that?"

"Because he's my friend and didn't do anything wrong," Annabeth explained.

"And because I love." She whispered to Percy so nobody would hear.

**"Why?"**

"Stupid," Most said.

**"Because you're my friend, Seaweed Brain. Any more stupid questions?"**

"I got some," Conner flipped open a note pad. "For Nico, is it true you bathe to Taylor Swift music? And for Annabeth, is it true you have a stuffed bear?"

"WHAT!" The two yelled.

"I have my answer," Conner smiled. "Please, continue."

Percy and Thalia looked at the mentioned people.

**I couldn't think of an answer for that. Fortunately I didn't have to. Annabeth was asleep.**

**I had trouble following her example, with Grover snoring and an albino lion staring hungrily at me, but eventually I closed my eyes.**

"I wasn't snoring," Grover pouted.

**My nightmare started out as something I'd dreamed a million times before: I was being forced to take a standardized test while wearing a straitjacket.**

"I hate those," Travis shuddered.

**All the other kids were going out to recess, and the teacher kept saying, **_**Come on, Percy. You're not stupid, are you? Pick up your pencil.**_

"How's he supposed to in the jacket?" Leo pointed out.

**Then the dream strayed from the usual.**

**I looked over at the next desk and saw a girl sitting there, also wearing a straitjacket. She was my age, with unruly black, punk-style hair, dark eyeliner around her stormy green eyes, and freckles across her nose. Somehow, I knew who she was. She was Thalia, daughter of Zeus.**

"You got everything right except the eyes." Annabeth said surprised.

"Who cares," Thalia said. "I want to know how he knew how I looked like?"

**She struggled against the straitjacket, glared at me in frustration, and snapped, **_**Well, Seaweed Brain? One of us has to get out of here.**_

"Yup, definitely you," Nico laughed.

"OW!"

**She's right, my dream-self thought. I'm going back to that cavern. I'm going to give Hades a piece of my mind.**

**The straitjacket melted off me. I fell through the class room floor. The teacher's voice changed until it was cold and evil, echoing from the depths of a great chasm.**

_**Percy Jackson, **_**it said. **_**Yes, the exchange went well, I see.**_

"Hades?" Most asked but were met with silence.

**I was back in the dark cavern, spirits of the dead drifting around me. Unseen in the pit, the monstrous thing was speaking, but this time it wasn't addressing me. The numbing power of its voice seemed directed somewhere else.**

_**And he suspects nothing? **_**it asked.**

**Another voice, one I almost recognized, answered at my shoulder. **_**Nothing, he is as ignorant as the rest.**_

**I looked over, but no one was there. The speaker was invisible.**

"Not me," Annabeth said as everyone eyed her. Percy glared at everybody who thought it was her.

_**Deception upon deception, **_**the thing in the pit mused aloud. **_**Excellent.**_

_**Truly, my lord, **_**said the voice next to me, **_**you are well-named the Crooked One. But was it really necessary? I could have brought you what I stole directly**_—

"Kronos," The gods whispered.

"Enough," Poseidon said. He turned to Zeus. "Your arrogance will get us destroyed. That's why they sent everyone back here, he's rising and we have to stop it!"

"We don't even know if he's rising!" Zeus shouted. "For all we know his plan won't work. Will discuss this after the book. Now no more of this will be discussed."

_**You?**_ **the monster said in scorn. **_**You have already shown your limits. You would have failed me completely had I not intervened.**_

_**But, my lord**_—

_**Peace, little servant. Our six months have bought us much. Zeus's anger has grown. Poseidon has played his most desperate card. Now we shall use it against him. Shortly you shall have the reward you wish, and your revenge. As soon as both items are delivered into my hands ... but wait. He is here.**_

"So we both don't have it," Hades said.

_**What? **_**The invisible servant suddenly sounded tense. **_**You summoned him, my lord?**_

_**No. **_**The full force of the monsters attention was now pouring over me, freezing me in place. **_**Blast his father's blood**_—_**he is too changeable, too unpredictable. The boy brought himself hither.**_

"Screw you," Poseidon shouted.

_**Impossible! **_**the servant cried.**

_Luke. _Annabeth thought. _So this is how you acted around him,_

_**For a weakling such as you, perhaps, **_**the voice snarled. **

"Hate to agree," Nico muttered sarcastically.

**Then its cold power turned back on me. **_**So ... you wish to dream of your quest, young half-blood? Then I will oblige.**_

**The scene changed.**

**I was standing in a vast throne room with black marble walls and bronze floors. The empty, horrid throne was made from human bones fused together. Standing at the foot of the dais was my mother, frozen in shimmering golden light, her arms outstretched.**

**I tried to step toward her, but my legs wouldn't move. I reached for her, only to realize that my hands were withering to bones. Grinning skeletons in Greek armor crowded around me, draping me with silk robes, wreathing my head with laurels that smoked with Chimera poison, burning into my scalp.**

**The evil voice began to laugh. **_**Hail, the conquering hero!**_

**I woke with a start.**

"Your dreams suck." Jason said.

"They get even worse."

**Grover was shaking my shoulder. "The truck's stopped," he said. "We think they're coming to check on the animals."**

**"Hide!" Annabeth hissed.**

**She had it easy. She just put on her magic cap and disappeared.**

"He has a point," Chris said.

**Grover and I had to dive behind feed sacks and hope we looked like turnips.**

**The trailer doors creaked open. Sunlight and heat poured in.**

**"Man!" one of the truckers said, waving his hand in front of his ugly nose. "I wish I hauled appliances." He climbed inside and poured some water from a jug into the animals' dishes.**

**"You hot, big boy?" he asked the lion, then splashed the rest of the bucket right in the lion's face.**

"Douche bag," Artemis, Thalia, Athena, and Grover shouted.

**The lion roared in indignation.**

**"Yeah, yeah, yeah," the man said.**

"I say we hunt him," Artemis offered. "Nothing better than hunting males."

**Next to me, under the turnip sacks, Grover tensed. For a peace-loving herbivore, he looked downright murderous.**

**The trucker threw the antelope a squashed-looking Happy Meal bag. He smirked at the zebra. "How ya doin', Stripes? Least we'll be getting rid of **_**you **_**this stop. You like magic shows? You're gonna love this one. They're gonna saw you in half!"**

"The Hecate kids did that to me once," Travis remembered. "Didn't fix me back until Chiron came along."

Chiron shook his head.

**The zebra, wild-eyed with fear, looked straight at me.**

**There was no sound, but as clear as day, I heard it say: **_**Free me, lord. Please.**_

"Lord?" Most said.

"He's a horse," Poseidon smiled. "I created them, so they treat Percy like royalty."

"So you're like Grover, but only with horses," Leo summed up. "Cool."

**I was too stunned to react.**

**There was a loud **_**knock, knock, knock **_**on the side of the trailer.**

**The trucker inside with us yelled, "What do you want, Eddie?"**

**A voice outside—it must've been Eddie's—shouted back, "Maurice? What'd ya say?"**

**"What are you banging for?"**

_**Knock, knock, knock.**_

**Outside, Eddie yelled, "What banging?"**

"Idiot," Most whispered.

**Our guy Maurice rolled his eyes and went back outside, cursing at Eddie for being an idiot.**

**A second later, Annabeth appeared next to me. She must've done the banging to get Maurice out of the trailer. She said, "This transport business can't be legal."**

**"No kidding," Grover said. He paused, as if listening. "The lion says these guys are animal smugglers!"**

"How would the lion know," Travis asked.

_**That's right, **_**the zebra's voice said in my mind.**

"Oh-kay then," Travis smiled sheepishly. "They're smugglers."

**"We've got to free them!" Grover said. He and Annabeth both looked at me, waiting for my lead.**

**I'd heard the zebra talk, but not the lion. Why? Maybe it was another learning disability ... I could only under stand zebras? **

"Highly doubt that," Nico said.

"I think you're going mentally insane." Nico got splashed with water and Percy brought out Riptide and started to twirl it in his fingers. Nico shuddered remebering how Percy beat Hades.

**Then I thought: horses. What had Annabeth said about Poseidon creating horses? Was a zebra close enough to a horse? Was that why I could understand it?**

**The zebra said, **_**Open my cage, lord. Please. I'll be fine after that.**_

"He has manners," Rachel noticed.

**Outside, Eddie and Maurice were still yelling at each other, but I knew they'd be coming inside to torment the animals again any minute. I grabbed Riptide and slashed the lock off the zebra's cage.**

**The zebra burst out. It turned to me and bowed. **_**Thank you, lord.**_

"Wow, Percy must love hanging out with them," Thalia laughed.

"What was that for!"

"Are they always like this?" Piper asked Annaebth. Annabeth just simply nodded.

**Grover held up his hands and said something to the zebra in goat talk, like a blessing.**

**Just as Maurice was poking his head back inside to check out the noise, the zebra leaped over him and into the street. There was yelling and screaming and cars honking. We rushed to the doors of the trailer in time to see the zebra galloping down a wide boulevard lined with hotels and casinos and neon signs. We'd just released a zebra in Las Vegas.**

"Did he make it?" Will asked.

"Never found out," Grover said.

"Though I'm sure he did," Annabeth added. "He said he'd know what to do."

"Riiight," Conner said. "Because every runaway Zebra knows where to go."

**Maurice and Eddie ran after it, with a few policemen running after them, shouting, "Hey! You need a permit for that!"**

**"Now would be a good time to leave," Annabeth said.**

**"The other animals first," Grover said.**

**I cut the locks with my sword. Grover raised his hands and spoke the same goat-blessing he'd used for the zebra.**

**"Good luck," I told the animals. **

"Right, because they understood," Conner laughed. "You should have him checked."

"Yeah, right after you," Thalia shot back.

**The antelope and the lion burst out of their cages and went off together into the streets.**

**Some tourists screamed. Most just backed off and took pictures, probably thinking it was some kind of stunt by one of the casinos.**

**"Will the animals be okay?" I asked Grover. "I mean, the desert and all—"**

**"Don't worry," he said. "I placed a satyr's sanctuary on them."**

**"Meaning?"**

**"Meaning they'll reach the wild safely," he said. "They'll find water, food, shade, whatever they need until they find a safe place to live."**

"That's cool, could you do it on Travis and Conner," Will asked. Everyone laughed except Travis and Connor.

**"Why can't you place a blessing like that on us?" I asked.**

**"It only works on wild animals."**

"So Travis and Conner," The demigods laughed together.

"So Nico." Connor said. BIG mistake. Getting electrocuted while getting splashed by water and feeling like the ground is about to swallow you isn't the best way to spend your time.

"Only we are allowed to make fun of Nico." Percy and Thalia yelled.

"Yeah. HEY!"

**"So it would only affect Percy," Annabeth reasoned.**

"Nice one," Thalia clapped Annabeth's hand.

"Yes, nice one daughter," Athena smiled.

Percy pouted and Annaebth laughed and kissed him on the cheek.

**"Hey!" I protested.**

**"Kidding," she said. "Come on. Let's get out of this filthy truck."**

**We stumbled out into the desert afternoon. It was a hundred and ten degrees, easy, and we must've looked like deep-fried vagrants, but everybody was too interested in the wild animals to pay us much attention.**

**We passed the Monte Carlo and the MGM. We passed pyramids, a pirate ship, and the Statue of Liberty, which was a pretty small replica, but still made me homesick.**

"I bet it was awesome though," Leo said. "I mean, how many could say that they went to Vegas at twelve."

"I was 28," Grover said.

"Not the point," Leo sighed.

**I wasn't sure what we were looking for. Maybe just a place to get out of the heat for a few minutes, find a sandwich and a glass of lemonade, make a new plan for getting west.**

**We must have taken a wrong turn, because we found ourselves at a dead end, standing in front of the Lotus Hotel and Casino.**

"Home sweet home," Nico sighed.

**The entrance was a huge neon flower, the petals lighting up and blinking. No one was going in or out, but the glittering chrome doors were open, spilling out air-conditioning that smelled like flowers—lotus blossom, maybe. I'd never smelled one, so I wasn't sure.**

**The doorman smiled at us. "Hey, kids. You look tired. You want to come in and sit down?"**

"And that's how they got us," Percy mumbled.

"What do you mean?" Piper asked.

"You'll see," Annabeth said. "Let's just say Nico knows exactly what I'm talking about."

**I'd learned to be suspicious, the last week or so. I figured anybody might be a monster or a god. You just couldn't tell. But this guy was normal. One look at him, and I could see. Besides, I was so relieved to hear somebody who sounded sympathetic that I nodded and said we'd love to come in. **

**Inside, we took one look around, and Grover said, "Whoa."**

**The whole lobby was a giant game room. And I'm not talking about cheesy old Pac-Man games or slot machines. There was an indoor waterslide snaking around the glass elevator, which went straight up at least forty floors. There was a climbing wall on the side of one building, and an indoor bungee-jumping bridge. There were virtual-reality suits with working laser guns. And hundreds of video games, each one the size of a widescreen TV. Basically, you name it, this place had it**_**. **_**There were a few other kids playing, but not that many. No waiting for any of the games. There were waitresses and snack bars all around, serving every kind of food you can imagine.**

Most had their eyes wide at the description.

"That sounds…" Travis started. "I don't know the appropriate word."

"Just start before he damages his brain even more," Annabeth said.

**"Hey!" a bellhop said. At least I guessed he was a bellhop. He wore a white-and-yellow Hawaiian shirt with lotus designs, shorts, and flip-flops. "Welcome to the Lotus Casino. Here's your room key."**

"but you didn't even reserve one," Leo pointed out.

"They don't care," Grover said. "They're just that friendly."

**I stammered, "Um, but..."**

**"No, no," he said, laughing. "The bill's taken care of. No extra charges, no tips. Just go on up to the top floor, room 4001. If you need anything, like extra bubbles for the hot tub, or skeet targets for the shooting range, or what ever, just call the front desk. Here are your LotusCash cards. They work in the restaurants and on all the games and rides."**

**He handed us each a green plastic credit card.**

"Unlimited?" Conner looked at Annabeth.

"Unlimited."

"Awesome!"

**I knew there must be some mistake. Obviously he thought we were some millionaire's kids. But I took the card and said, "How much is on here?"**

**His eyebrows knit together. "What do you mean?"**

**"I mean, when does it run out of cash?"**

**He laughed. "Oh, you're making a joke. **

"Not a very funny one," Hermes pointed out.

"Not at all," Apollo agreed. "We should check it out after."

"Haven't you idiots figured out what the place is?" Artemis asked.

"Uh…"

**"Hey, that's cool. Enjoy your stay."**

**We took the elevator upstairs and checked out our room. It was a suite with three separate bedrooms and a bar stocked with candy, sodas, and chips. A hotline to room service. Fluffy towels and water beds with feather pillows. A big-screen television with satellite and high-speed Internet. The balcony had its own hot tub, **

"Sounds like heaven," Aphrodite sighed. "A cold drink, nice bikini, a hot tub…"

The demigod guys stared at Aphrodite with dreamy eyes before the girls knocked them each on the back of the head.

"Boys," Thalia said. "The biggest Seaweed Brain is Seaweed Brain and even he didn't look."

"Because he's got eyes for only one person," Rachel snickered as they watched Annabeth blush and Percy was crimson red while making out with Annabeth.

"Why does the boy insist on kissing you," Athena sighed. She got no reply.

**and sure enough, there was a skeet-shooting machine and a shotgun, so you could launch clay pigeons right out over the Las Vegas skyline and plug them with your gun. I didn't see how that could be legal, but I thought it was pretty cool. The view over the Strip and the desert was amazing, though I doubted we'd ever find time to look at the view with a room like this.**

**"Oh, goodness," Annabeth said. "This place is ..."**

**"Sweet," Grover said. "Absolutely sweet."**

"And I was sucked in," Grover sighed.

**There were clothes in the closet, and they fit me. I frowned, thinking that this was a little strange.**

**I threw Ares's backpack in the trash can. Wouldn't need that anymore. When we left, I could just charge a new one at the hotel store.**

**I took a shower, which felt awesome after a week of grimy travel. I changed clothes, ate a bag of chips, drank three Cokes, and came out feeling better than I had in a long time. In the back of my mind, some small problem kept nagging me. I'd had a dream or something ... I needed to talk to my friends. But I was sure it could wait.**

**I came out of the bedroom and found that Annabeth and Grover had also showered and changed clothes. Grover was eating potato chips to his heart's content, while Annabeth cranked up the National Geographic Channel.**

"Really Annabeth," Travis shook his head. "All the fun stuff to do and eat and your watching that."

**"All those stations," I told her, "and you turn on National Geographic. Are you insane?"**

"Weird," Travis said. "Ah, but at least I think like Perce."

**"It's interesting."**

**"I feel good," Grover said. "I love this place."**

"You've been there for a couple minutes," Rachel pointed out.

**Without his even realizing it, the wings sprouted out of his shoes and lifted him a foot off the ground, then back down again.**

**"So what now?" Annabeth asked. "Sleep?"**

**Grover and I looked at each other and grinned. We both held up our green plastic LotusCash cards.**

**"Play time," I said.**

"Yes, wars on the horizon and you're having play time," Zeus grumbled.

"They're kids, not mercenaries," Poseidon pointed out.

**I couldn't remember the last time I had so much fun. I came from a relatively poor family. Our idea of a splurge was eating out at Burger King and renting a video. A five-star Vegas hotel? Forget it.**

**I bungee-jumped the lobby five or six times, did the waterslide, snowboarded the artificial ski slope, and played virtual-reality laser tag and FBI sharpshooter. I saw Grover a few times, going from game to game. He really liked the reverse hunter thing—where the deer go out and shoot the rednecks. **

"I'd play," Artemis agreed.

"It was fun," Grover remembered. "I could show you sometime?"

"Are you hitting on her," Nico whispered.

"I don't know man," Grover whispered back. "I'm feeling crazy."

"You are crazy," Nico slapped Grover over the head. "Snap out of it." Percy splashed some water on Grover.

**I saw Annabeth playing trivia games and other brainiac stuff. They had this huge 3-D Sim game where you build your own city, and you could actually see the holographic buildings rise on the display board. I didn't think much of it, but Annabeth loved it.**

**I'm not sure when I first realized something was wrong.**

**Probably, it was when I noticed the guy standing next to me at VR sharpshooters. He was about thirteen, I guess, but his clothes were weird. I thought he was some Elvis impersonator's son. He wore bell-bottom jeans and a red T-shirt with black piping, and his hair was permed and gelled like a New Jersey girl's on homecoming night.**

"I'm guessing he doesn't go out much," Conner said.

"And you do?" Chris challenged.

"I have an excuse," Conner argued. "If I did, monsters would have a field day."

**We played a game of sharpshooters together and he said, "Groovy, man. Been here two weeks, and the games keep getting better and better."**

_**Groovy?**_

"Kids messed up," Will summed up.

**Later, while we were talking, I said something was "sick," and he looked at me kind of startled, as if he'd never heard the word used that way before.**

**He said his name was Darrin, but as soon as I started asking him questions he got bored with me and started to go back to the computer screen.**

**I said, "Hey, Darrin?"**

**"What?"**

**"What year is it?"**

"Random question," Rachel said.

"That question saved our lives," Annabeth answered.

**He frowned at me. "In the game?"**

**"No. In real life."**

**He had to think about it. "1977."**

"WHAT," Most demigods said.

**"No," I said, getting a little scared. "Really."**

**"Hey, man. Bad vibes. I got a game happening."**

"Groovy, Darrin, and bad vibes," Apollo said. "definitely sounds like he's from 1977."

**After that he totally ignored me.**

**I started talking to people, and I found it wasn't easy. They were glued to the TV screen, or the video game, or their food, or whatever. I found a guy who told me it was 1985. Another guy told me it was 1993. They all claimed they hadn't been in here very long, a few days, a few weeks at most. They didn't really know and they didn't care.**

"It's the hotel or is it a spell?" Piper asked.

"You'll see," Grover said.

**Then it occurred to me: how long had I been here? It seemed like only a couple of hours, but was it?**

**I tried to remember why we were here. We were going to Los Angeles. We were supposed to find the entrance to the Underworld. My mother ... for a scary second, I had trouble remembering her name. Sally. Sally Jackson. I had to find her. I had to stop Hades from causing World War III.**

"It's not me," Hades whined.

**I found Annabeth still building her city.**

**"Come on," I told her. "We've got to get out of here."**

**No response.**

**I shook her. "Annabeth?"**

**She looked up, annoyed. "What?''**

"So feisty," Conner laughed.

"Never say that again," Clarisse said.

**"We need to leave."**

**"Leave? What are you talking about? I've just got the towers—"**

**"This place is a trap."**

**She didn't respond until I shook her again. "What?"**

**"Listen. The Underworld. Our quest!"**

**"Oh, come on, Percy. Just a few more minutes."**

"Maybe we should have hired mercenaries," Zeus grumbled.

"Oh stop it," Hera said. "They're being influenced and you know it."

**"Annabeth, there are people here from 1977. Kids who have never aged. You check in, and you stay forever."**

**"So?" she asked. "Can you imagine a better place?"**

"Wow, I was really messed up," Annabeth smiled a little. Percy hugged her close to him and whispered in her ear.

**I grabbed her wrist and yanked her away from the game.**

**"Hey!" She screamed and hit me, but nobody else even bothered looking at us. They were too busy.**

"Sorry," Annabeth whispered to Percy. Percy looked at Annabeth like she was the only person in the room.

**I made her look directly in my eyes. I said, "Spiders. Large, hairy spiders."**

"Scary, but smart," Athena said.

**That jarred her. Her vision cleared. "Oh my gods," she said. "How long have we—"**

**"I don't know, but we've got to find Grover."**

**We went searching, and found him still playing Virtual Deer Hunter.**

"We should get that for camp, but monster," Conner said.

**"Grover!" we both shouted.**

**He said, "Die, human! Die, silly polluting nasty person!"**

Everyone turned to Grover and stared in disbelief.

"Um…I think the game got to me," Grover offered.

"You're nuts," Travis said. "Glad you're on our side."

**"Grover!"**

**He turned the plastic gun on me and started clicking, as if I were just another image from the screen.**

**I looked at Annabeth, and together we took Grover by the arms and dragged him away. His flying shoes sprang to life and started tugging his legs in the other direction as he shouted, "No! I just got to a new level! No!"**

**The Lotus bellhop hurried up to us. "Well, now, are you ready for your platinum cards?"**

"What's the difference," Will said. "I mean, your other ones were unlimited."

"Who knows," Annabeth said. "We didn't stay long enough to find out."

**"We're leaving," I told him.**

**"Such a shame," he said, and I got the feeling that he really meant it, that we'd be breaking his heart if we went. "We just added an entire new floor full of games for platinum-card members."**

**He held out the cards, and I wanted one. I knew that if I took one, I'd never leave. I'd stay here, happy forever, playing games forever, and soon I'd forget my mom, and my quest, and maybe even my own name. I'd be playing virtual rifleman with groovy Disco Darrin forever.**

_Fight it Percy. _Chiron thought.

**Grover reached for the card, but Annabeth yanked back his arm and said, "No, thanks."**

**We walked toward the door, and as we did, the smell of the food and the sounds of the games seemed to get more and more inviting. I thought about our room upstairs. We could just stay the night, sleep in a real bed for once...**

**Then we burst through the doors of the Lotus Casino and ran down the sidewalk. It felt like afternoon, about the same time of day we'd gone into the casino, but something was wrong. The weather had completely changed. It was stormy, with heat lightning flashing out in the desert.**

"Uh oh."

**Ares's backpack was slung over my shoulder, which was odd, because I was sure I had thrown it in the trash can in room 4001, but at the moment I had other problems to worry about.**

"Magic bag," Travis said. "I could use that."

"For what?" Chris asked.

"No comment."

**I ran to the nearest newspaper stand and read the year first. Thank the gods, it was the same year it had been when we went in. Then I noticed the date: June twentieth.**

**We had been in the Lotus Casino for five days.**

"WHAT!"

"So it speeds up the days," Jason concluded.

"It tricks you," Annabeth said.

**We had only one day left until the summer solstice. One day to complete our quest.**

* * *

**Hey! orry for the late update! I don't know when I should bring in Luke or if I should tell me what you guys think in the comments or PM me. You can also tell anybody else you want me to bring in and how to bring them in to the story. Thanks for all of your support. PLKA Out!**


	25. Author's Note

Hey Guys! I know you think this is an update, but it isn't. I'm really sorry I havent really updated. I'm changing the plot fo ToN. So look out for that. Again, so Sorry!


	26. Water Beds and Tickle Fights

"**We Shop For Water Beds?" **Grover read.

Annabeth shivered as she remebered almost being stressed to death. Percy rubbed her back and she instantly calmed down.

**It was Annabeth's idea.**

"Like always," Rachel said a bit grudgingly. But nobody noticed except Aphrodite. _I think Rachel likes Percy..._

**She loaded us into the back of a Vegas taxi as if we actually had money, and told the driver, "Los Angeles, please."**

"You were going to make a run for it?" Travis asked.

**The cabbie chewed his cigar and sized us up. "That's three hundred miles. For that, you gotta pay up front."**

**"You accept casino debit cards?" Annabeth asked.**

"Is that really going to work?" Thalia asked.

"You'll see."

**He shrugged. "Some of 'em. Same as credit cards. I gotta swipe 'em through first."**

**Annabeth handed him her green LotusCash card.**

**He looked at it skeptically.**

**"Swipe it," Annabeth invited.**

**He did.**

**His meter machine started rattling. The lights flashed. Finally an infinity symbol came up next to the dollar sign.**

"Holy…" Conner whispered. He turned to Annabeth and Percy. "Please tell me one of you kept their card."

"I don't think so," Annabeth thought back. "But why? You wouldn't be able to use it."

"You're so naïve Annabeth," Conner shook his head. "When it comes to ripping people off, I'll find a way."

**The cigar fell out of the driver's mouth. He looked back at us, his eyes wide. "Where to in Los Angeles... uh, Your Highness?"**

"Your highness," Percy whispered in her ear. "Would you like to escape for a little while?"

"Maybe later." She whispered back.

**"The Santa Monica Pier." Annabeth sat up a little straighter. I could tell she liked the "Your Highness" thing. **

Annabeth looked a little embarrassed.

"So, Your Highness," Katie snickered.

"Does Percy call you that?" Thalia laughed.

"Ugh, um," Annabeth and Percy were both beet red.

**"Get us there fast, and you can keep the change."**

**Maybe she shouldn't have told him that. The cab's speedometer never dipped below ninety-five the whole way through the Mojave Desert.**

"That's reckless," Demeter pointed.

"That's amazing," Ares contradicted.

**On the road, we had plenty of time to talk. I told Annabeth and Grover about my latest dream, but the details got sketchier the more I tried to remember them. The Lotus Casino seemed to have short-circuited my memory. **

**I couldn't recall what the invisible servant's voice had sounded like, though I was sure it was somebody I knew. The servant had called the monster in the pit something other than "my lord" ... some special name or title...**

**"The Silent One?" Annabeth suggested. "The Rich One? Both of those are nicknames for Hades."**

"Still on about me," Hades shook his head.

"I like the rich one," Apollo said randomly.

**"Maybe ..." I said, though neither sounded quite right.**

**"That throne room sounds like Hades's," Grover said. "That's the way it's usually described."**

**I shook my head. "Something's wrong. The throne room wasn't the main part of the dream. And that voice from the pit ... I don't know. It just didn't feel like a god's voice."**

"Thank you boy," Hades smirked down at Percy. "I have a believer on my team."

"We have teams?" Apollo asked.

"No, idiot," Artemis grumbled. "We know who the voice is."

"No we don't," Zeus said alarmed.

"Ah come on, it's him," Poseidon sighed. "All the signs point to him."

"Yes, I agree," Athena said. "Perseus is having many dreams about him."

"I said we'd discuss this after the book," Zeus yelled.

"When it is true, don't come crying to me."

**Annabeth's eyes widened.**

**"What?" I asked.**

**"Oh ... nothing. I was just—No, it **_**has **_**to be Hades. Maybe he sent this thief, this invisible person, to get the master bolt, and something went wrong—"**

Hades looked down at Annabeth with a cold stare.

But Percy was glaring right back at him and had a pen out. Nico instantly backed away from Percy.

**"Like what?"**

**"I—I don't know," she said. "But if he stole Zeus's symbol of power from Olympus, and the gods were hunting him, I mean, a lot of things could go wrong. So this thief had to hide the bolt, or he lost it somehow. Anyway, he failed to bring it to Hades. That's what the voice said in your dream, right? The guy failed. That would explain what the Furies were searching for when they came after us on the bus. Maybe they thought we had retrieved the bolt."**

"She has a point," Hephaestus pointed out.

Athena eyed her daughter. "She may, but the hesitations in the book are making me think otherwise."

The demigods looked anywhere but the gods.

**I wasn't sure what was wrong with her. She looked pale.**

**"But if I'd already retrieved the bolt," I said, "why would I be traveling to the Underworld?"**

"Has a point," Nico said.

**"To threaten Hades," Grover suggested. "To bribe or blackmail him into getting your mom back."**

"You're getting it satyr," Ares said to Grover.

Grover blushed and turned back to the book.

**I whistled. "You have evil thoughts for a goat."**

Grover stopped reading for the roar of laughter.

"Grover evil," Conner laughed.

"They were pretty evil though." Percy said.

**"Why, thank you."**

**"But the thing in the pit said it was waiting for **_**two **_**items," I said. "If the master bolt is one, what's the other?"**

"Two items?" Athena repeated.

**Grover shook his head, clearly mystified.**

**Annabeth was looking at me as if she knew my next question, and was silently willing me not to ask it.**

**"You have an idea what might be in that pit, don't you?" I asked her. "I mean, if it isn't Hades?"**

"I know exactly what's in that pit," Hades grumbled.

**"Percy ... let's not talk about it. Because if it isn't Hades ... No. It has to be Hades."**

"You know, hopefully it is Hades," Poseidon said. "I mean, the other option would be worse."

**Wasteland rolled by. We passed a sign that said CALI FORNIA STATE LINE, 12 MILES.**

**I got the feeling I was missing one simple, critical piece of information. It was like when I stared at a common word I should know, but I couldn't make sense of it because one or two letters were floating around. The more I thought about my quest, the more I was sure that confronting Hades wasn't the real answer. There was something else going on, something even more dangerous.**

"He's right," Athena decided. "It makes no sense. He's being accused as the thief, yet both of you are after him, but _his_ voice is calling the shots. Hades has Sally as a bargaining chip, but expects Percy to have the bolt when he in fact stole it."

"But I didn't," Hades urged.

"We don't know that," Zeus shouted.

"Thalia Grace!" Zeus roared being as she struck him with lightning.

**The problem was: we were hurtling toward the Underworld at ninety-five miles an hour, betting that Hades had the master bolt. If we got there and found out we were wrong, we wouldn't have time to correct ourselves. The solstice deadline would pass and war would begin.**

"He's right," Hera said. "The assumption that Hades could have the bolt could cost a lot of lives."

"And then there's war," Ares mouth watered.

**"The answer is in the Underworld," Annabeth assured me. **

**"You saw spirits of the dead, Percy. There's only one place that could be. We're doing the right thing."**

**She tried to boost our morale by suggesting clever strategies for getting into the Land of the Dead, but my heart wasn't in it. There were just too many unknown factors. It was like cramming for a test without knowing the subject. And believe me, I'd done **_**that **_**enough times.**

"Us too," The Stolls chimed in. "Best way to prepare."

Annabeth and Katie slapped the the Stolls over the head.

**The cab sped west. Every gust of wind through Death Valley sounded like a spirit of the dead. Every time the brakes hissed on an eighteen-wheeler, it reminded me of Echidna's reptilian voice.**

**At sunset, the taxi dropped us at the beach in Santa Monica. It looked exactly the way L.A. beaches do in the movies, only it smelled worse. **

**There were carnival rides lining the Pier, palm trees lining the sidewalks, homeless guys sleeping in the sand dunes, and surfer dudes waiting for the perfect wave.**

**Grover, Annabeth, and I walked down to the edge of the surf.**

**"What now?" Annabeth asked.**

"Yeah, what are you even doing there?" Jason asked.

"Remember the voice under water," Piper remembered. "She said to meet them."

**The Pacific was turning gold in the setting sun. I thought about how long it had been since I'd stood on the beach at Montauk, on the opposite side of the country, looking out at a different sea.**

**How could there be a god who could control all that? What did my science teacher used to say—two-thirds of the earth's surface was covered in water? How could I be the son of someone that powerful?**

Poseidon smiled smugly.

"Take it easy," Zeus rolled his eyes. "I own then entire sky."

"Yeah but everyone's on the ground," Poseidon pointed out. "All you could do is strike them down with lightning. I cover their land with water and destroy everything."

"What kind of discussion is this," Hera pointed out. "You're both talking about killing people. You sound like Hades."

**I stepped into the surf**

**"Percy?" Annabeth said. "What are you doing?"**

**I kept walking, up to my waist, then my chest.**

**She called after me, "You know how polluted that water is? There're all kinds of toxic—"**

**That's when my head went under.**

"You finally figured out a way to shut her up," Thalia said.

"Well that's one way," Nico murmured. "There's also making out with her." Nico and Thalia were rolloing on the floor laughing like crazy.

**I held my breath at first. It's difficult to intentionally inhale water. Finally I couldn't stand it anymore. I gasped. Sure enough, I could breathe normally.**

**I walked down into the shoals. I shouldn't have been able to see through the murk, but somehow I could tell where everything was. I could sense the rolling texture of the bottom. I could make out sand-dollar colonies dotting the sandbars. I could even see the currents, warm and cold streams swirling together.**

"That's amazing," Katie said.

**I felt something rub against my leg. I looked down and almost shot out of the water like a ballistic missile. Sliding along beside me was a five-foot-long mako shark.**

"How could he possibly know that?" Will asked.

"Sea God," Poseidon said. "Percy's is basically a dictionary underwater. You name it, he knows it."

"So…Percy's…smart?" Chris said slowly.

"Apparently," Clarisse said. "But don't tell him that."

"You know, just because I'm asleep doesn't mean I can't hear you." Percy was lying down his head in Annabeth's lap and Baby Percy asleep next to him.

**But the thing wasn't attacking. It was nuzzling me. Heeling like a dog. **

"Awesome," Leo said. "I always wanted a mako shark as a pet."

"Really?" Piper asked skeptically.

"Um…no," Leo admitted. "But I do now."

**Tentatively, I touched its dorsal fin. It bucked a little, as if inviting me to hold tighter. I grabbed the fin with both hands. It took off, pulling me along. The shark carried me down into the darkness. It deposited me at the edge of the ocean proper, where the sand bank dropped off into a huge chasm. It was like standing on the rim of the Grand Canyon at midnight, not being able to see much, but knowing the void was right there.**

"Ah, the Grand Canyon," Leo said. "I remember it like yesterday."

"Yeah, and I remember falling off like it was yesterday," Piper grumbled.

Aphrodite paled at the thought. She had forgot that Piper would eventually be in the book.

**The surface shimmered maybe a hundred and fifty feet above. I knew I should've been crushed by the pressure. Then again, I shouldn't have been able to breathe. I wondered if there was a limit to how deep I could go, if I could sink straight to the bottom of the Pacific.**

"He could," Poseidon said.

**Then I saw something glimmering in the darkness below, growing bigger and brighter as it rose toward me. A woman's voice, like my mother's, called: "Percy Jackson."**

"Percy's pretty popular," Travis noticed.

"Idiot, it's the girl from before," Katie said.

**As she got closer, her shape became clearer. She had flowing black hair, a dress made of green silk. Light flickered around her, and her eyes were so distractingly beautiful I hardly noticed the stallion-sized sea horse she was riding.**

**She dismounted. The sea horse and the mako shark whisked off and started playing something that looked like tag. **

"That's nice," Zeus grumbled. "My bolt is lost and your pets are playing tag."

"Yes, because the mako shark is going to find your bolt dad," Thalia rolled her eyes.

**The underwater lady smiled at me. "You've come far, Percy Jackson. Well done."**

**I wasn't quite sure what to do, so I bowed. "You're the woman who spoke to me in the Mississippi River."**

"Wow, he actually bowed," Nico whistled.

"Probably because she's helping him," Rachel pointed out.

**"Yes, child. I am a Nereid, a spirit of the sea. It was not easy to appear so far upriver, but the naiads, my freshwater cousins, helped sustain my life force. They honor Lord Poseidon, though they do not serve in his court."**

**"And ... you serve in Poseidon's court?"**

**She nodded. "It has been many years since a child of the Sea God has been born. We have watched you with great interest."**

"Yes many years," Zeus said. "It should have been never born."

"Hypocrite," Hades whispered.

"DON'T YOU DARE CALL MY SON AN IT!" Poseidon yelled.

**Suddenly I remembered faces in the waves off Montauk Beach when I was a little boy, reflections of smiling women. Like so many of the weird things in my life, I'd never given it much thought before.**

**"If my father is so interested in me," I said, "why isn't he here? Why doesn't he speak to me?"**

Sally and Poseidon's eyes grew sad at Percy's reaction.

Percy smiled at his dad as if to say, I understand why.

**A cold current rose out of the depths.**

**"Do not judge the Lord of the Sea too harshly," the Nereid told me. "He stands at the brink of an unwanted war. He has much to occupy his time. Besides, he is forbidden to help you directly. The gods may not show such favoritism."**

"Stupid rule," Poseidon said.

"I agree," Aphrodite agreed. "What's wrong with helping the kids out? My boys and girls need tips sometimes and I can't even make an appearance."

"That's what you would spend your time doing?" Artemis challenged.

"A makeover, shopping trip, pedicure, the usual stuff," Aphrodite said.

"No pedicures!" Zeus shouted. "And no direct help from any of you."

**"Even to their own children?"**

**"Especially to them. The gods can work by indirect influence only. That is why I give you a warning, and a gift."**

**She held out her hand. Three white pearls flashed in her palm.**

_Three, why three? _Poseidon thought.

**"I know you journey to Hades's realm," she said. "Few mortals have ever done this and survived: Orpheus, who had great music skill; Hercules, who had great strength; Houdini, who could escape even the depths of Tartarus. Do you have these talents?"**

**"Urn ... no, ma'am."**

**"Ah, but you have something else, Percy. You have gifts you have only begun to know. The oracles have foretold a great and terrible future for you, should you survive to man hood.**

"Great to know," Poseidon said quietly.

"Don't worry, it's Perce," Apollo said. "He'll be fine."

**Poseidon would not have you die before your time. Therefore take these, and when you are in need, smash a pearl at your feet."**

**"What will happen?"**

"Hopefully they'll blow up," Dionysus offered.

Everybody glared at him.

**"That," she said, "depends on the need. But remember: what belongs to the sea will always return to the sea."**

**"What about the warning?"**

**Her eyes flickered with green light. "Go with what your heart tells you, or you will lose all. Hades feeds on doubt and hopelessness. He will trick you if he can, make you mistrust your own judgment. Once you are in his realm, he will never willingly let you leave. Keep faith. Good luck, Percy Jackson."**

"Does everyone think so highly of me?" Hades said sarcastically.

**She summoned her sea horse and rode toward the void.**

**"Wait!" I called. "At the river, you said not to trust the gifts. What gifts?"**

**"Good-bye, young hero," she called back, her voice fading into the depths. "You must listen to your heart." She became a speck of glowing green, and then she was gone.**

"She's right," Hestia said from her hearth. "Following his heart is the only way."

"But what if his heart leads him in the wrong direction sister," Poseidon said quietly.

"Faith brother," Hestia smiled at him. "Have faith in Perseus. I do."

"Thank you Lady Hestia."

**I wanted to follow her down into the darkness. I wanted to see the court of Poseidon. But I looked up at the sunset darkening on the surface. My friends were waiting. We had so little time...**

**I kicked upward toward the shore.**

**When I reached the beach, my clothes dried instantly. I told Grover and Annabeth what had happened, and showed them the pearls.**

**Annabeth grimaced. "No gift comes without a price."**

**"They were free."**

**"No." She shook her head. "'There is no such thing as a free lunch.' That's an ancient Greek saying that translated pretty well into American. There will be a price. You wait."**

"Way to be optimistic Annabeth," Rachel said.

"It's the truth," Annabeth said.

**On that happy thought, we turned our backs on the sea.**

**With some spare change from Ares's backpack, we took the bus into West Hollywood. I showed the driver the Underworld address slip I'd taken from Aunty Em's Garden Gnome Emporium, but he'd never heard of DOA Recording Studios.**

**"You remind me of somebody I saw on TV," he told me. "You a child actor or something?"**

**"Uh ... I'm a stunt double ... for a lot of child actors."**

"Wow, he's terrible at lying," Travis said.

**"Oh! That explains it."**

"Yet it works," Hermes finished. "One in a million."

**We thanked him and got off quickly at the next stop.**

**We wandered for miles on foot, looking for DOA. Nobody seemed to know where it was. It didn't appear in the phone book.**

**Twice, we ducked into alleys to avoid cop cars.**

"You guys really thought that the story would be that big?" Thalia asked.

"The word terrorist does that Thalia," Annabeth pointed out. "He blew a hole through the arch for gods sake."

"I was saving people." Percy defended himself in his sleep.

**I froze in front of an appliance-store window because a television was playing an interview with somebody who looked very familiar—my stepdad, Smelly Gabe. He was talking to Barbara Walters—I mean, as if he were some kind of huge celebrity. She was interviewing him in our apartment, in the middle of a poker game, and there was a young blond lady sitting next to him, patting his hand.**

**A fake tear glistened on his cheek. He was saying, "Honest, Ms. Walters, if it wasn't for Sugar here, my grief counselor, I'd be a wreck. My stepson took everything I cared about. My wife ... my Camaro ... I—I'm sorry. I have trouble talking about it."**

"What a load of−"

**"There you have it, America." Barbara Walters turned to the camera. "A man torn apart. An adolescent boy with serious issues. Let me show you, again, the last known photo of this troubled young fugitive, taken a week ago in Denver."**

"Serious issues," Nico repeated. "Lady, look at the man you're interviewing."

**The screen cut to a grainy shot of me, Annabeth, and Grover standing outside the Colorado diner, talking to Ares.**

"Great," Ares smiled. "I'm wanted too."

"And why is that good?" Hermes asked.

"They'll come for me, and I ain't going down without a fight," He smiled evilly.

**"Who are the other children in this photo?" Barbara Walters asked dramatically. "Who is the man with them? Is Percy Jackson a delinquent, a terrorist, or perhaps the brainwashed victim of a frightening new cult? When we come back, we chat with a leading child psychologist. Stay tuned, America."**

"My son is neither," Sally said obviously upset.

"Yes, but anything for a story," Demeter said. "The mortals love all that drama."

"Maybe so," Poseidon said. "But when it involves my son, I don't want to see any of it."

"Oh poor you Poseidon," Aphrodite said. "You're going to hate all the drama I have waiting for Percy."

"No more drama please. I've already had enough drama for the entire universe."

**"C'mon," Grover told me. He hauled me away before I could punch a hole in the appliance-store window.**

**It got dark, and hungry-looking characters started coming out on the streets to play. Now, don't get me wrong. I'm a New Yorker. I don't scare easy. But L.A. had a totally different feel from New York. Back home, everything seemed close. It didn't matter how big the city was, you could get anywhere without getting lost. The street pattern and the subway made sense. There was a system to how things worked. A kid could be safe as long as he wasn't stupid.**

"So the Stolls would be hopeless," Katie summed up.

**L.A. wasn't like that. It was spread out, chaotic, hard to move around. It reminded me of Ares. It wasn't enough for L.A. to be big; it had to prove it was big by being loud and strange and difficult to navigate, too. I didn't know how we were ever going to find the entrance to the Underworld by tomorrow, the summer solstice.**

**We walked past gangbangers, bums, and street hawkers, who looked at us like they were trying to figure if we were worth the trouble of mugging.**

**As we hurried passed the entrance of an alley, a voice from the darkness said, "Hey, you."**

**Like an idiot, I stopped.**

"Hasn't your mother ever told you not to talk to strangers," Hera shook her head.

"My mother once told me not to steal," Travis said. "I came home that same night with a diamond ring for her."

Hermes beamed at his son, while Conner shook his head.

"That was me, you got her the pearl necklace," He explained.

"Did not."

"Did too."

"Did not!"

"Both of you shut up," Thalia screamed. "Who cares, you both didn't listen."

**Before I knew it, we were surrounded. A gang of kids had circled us. Six of them in all—white kids with expensive clothes and mean faces. Like the kids at Yancy Academy: rich brats playing at being bad boys.**

**Instinctively, I uncapped Riptide.**

**When the sword appeared out of nowhere, the kids backed off, but their leader was either really stupid or really brave, because he kept coming at me with a switchblade.**

**I made the mistake of swinging.**

**The kid yelped. But he must've been one hundred per cent mortal, because the blade passed harmlessly right through his chest. He looked down. "What the ..."**

"He actually would have killed him," Nico said, a little in awe.

"Better him then us," Annabeth said.

"Annabeth," Athena said stunned.

"What?" She asked. "They would have hurt us."

_They would have hurt Percy._ Thougtht Annabeth.

**I figured I had about three seconds before his shock turned to anger. "Run!" I screamed at Annabeth and Grover.**

**We pushed two kids out of the way and raced down the street, not knowing where we were going. We turned a sharp corner.**

**"There!" Annabeth shouted.**

Grover eyed Annabeth who glared back at him.

_It wasn't my fault. _Annabeth thought. _Maybe a little._

**Only one store on the block looked open, its windows glaring with neon. The sign above the door said something like CRSTUY'S WATRE BDE ALPACE.**

**"Crusty's Water Bed Palace?" Grover translated.**

**It didn't sound like a place I'd ever go except in an emergency, but this definitely qualified.**

**We burst through the doors, ran behind a water bed, and ducked. A split second later, the gang kids ran past outside.**

**"I think we lost them," Grover panted.**

**A voice behind us boomed, "Lost who?"**

**We all jumped.**

**Standing behind us was a guy who looked like a raptor in a leisure suit. He was at least seven feet tall, with absolutely no hair. He had gray, leathery skin, thick-lidded eyes, and a cold, reptilian smile. He moved toward us slowly, but I got the feeling he could move fast if he needed to.**

"Creepy," Most said.

**His suit might've come from the Lotus Casino. It belonged back in the seventies, big-time. The shirt was silk paisley, unbuttoned halfway down his hairless chest. The lapels on his velvet jacket were as wide as landing strips. The silver chains around his neck—I couldn't even count them.**

**"I'm Crusty," he said, with a tartar-yellow smile.**

**I resisted the urge to say, **_**Yes, you are.**_

"Should have," Apollo said. "Would have been hilarious."

**"Sorry to barge in," I told him. "We were just, um, browsing."**

**"You mean hiding from those no-good kids," he grumbled. "They hang around every night. I get a lot of people in here, thanks to them. Say, you want to look at a water bed?"**

"Why would they want that?" Katie asked.

**I was about to say **_**No, thanks, **_**when he put a huge paw on my shoulder and steered me deeper into the showroom.**

"I have a feeling things are going to get bad," Poseidon said.

**There was every kind of water bed you could imagine: different kinds of wood, different patterns of sheets; queen-size, king-size, emperor-of-the-universe-size.**

**"This is my most popular model." Crusty spread his hands proudly over a bed covered with black satin sheets, with built-in Lava Lamps on the headboard. The mattress vibrated, so it looked like oil-flavored Jell-O.**

**"Million-hand massage," Crusty told us. "Go on, try it out. Shoot, take a nap. I don't care. No business today, any-way.**

**"Um," I said, "I don't think ..."**

**"Million-hand massage!" Grover cried, and dove in. "Oh, you guys! This is cool."**

"And look whose fault it is now," Annabeth smirked.

"Well how was I supposed to know," Grover complained.

"And how was I supposed to know that the place was dangerous," Annabeth shot back.

"So it is dangerous," Athena cut in.

Annabeth sighed. "Of course it is, since when have we had anything easy to do?"

"Is Crusty the monster?" Will asked.

"Just read Grover," Percy said. "You'll find out soon."

**"Hmm," Crusty said, stroking his leathery chin. "Almost, almost."**

**"Almost what?" I asked.**

**He looked at Annabeth. "Do me a favor and try this one over here, honey. Might fit."**

**Annabeth said, "But what—"**

"He better not touch you," Athena threatened.

**He patted her reassuringly on the shoulder and led her over to the Safari Deluxe model with teakwood lions carved into the frame and a leopard-patterned comforter. When Annabeth didn't want to lie down, Crusty pushed her.**

**"Hey!" she protested.**

"I'll kill him," Athena shouted.

**Crusty snapped his fingers. **_**"Ergo!"**_

**Ropes sprang from the sides of the bed, lashing around Annabeth, holding her to the mattress.**

**Grover tried to get up, but ropes sprang from his black-satin bed, too, and lashed him down.**

"Wow," Travis said. "That's a dirty trick."

"I like it," Conner said.

"Well I don't," Annabeth said. "And soon you won't either."

**"N-not c-c-cool!" he yelled, his voice vibrating from the million-hand massage. "N-not c-cool a-at all!"**

**The giant looked at Annabeth, then turned toward me and grinned. "Almost, darn it."**

**I tried to step away, but his hand shot out and clamped around the back of my neck. "Whoa, kid. Don't worry. We'll find you one in a sec."**

"You guys have horrible luck," Jason said.

"I swear, monsters just find us at the worst time," Annabeth said.

**"Let my friends go."**

**"Oh, sure I will. But I got to make them fit, first."**

"What's that supposed to mean?" Piper asked.

**"What do you mean?"**

"Whoops," Piper smiled.

**"All the beds are exactly six feet, see? Your friends are too short. Got to make them fit."**

"Well unless he has magic beans, how's he going to pull that off?" Nico asked.

**Annabeth and Grover kept struggling.**

**"Can't stand imperfect measurements," Crusty muttered. **_**"Ergo!"**_

**A new set of ropes leaped out from the top and bottom of the beds, wrapping around Grover and Annabeth's ankles, then around their armpits. The ropes started tightening, pulling my friends from both ends.**

"He's going to rip them in half," Athena whispered.

"Don't worry, Percy isn't trapped," Chris tried to reassure everyone.

"Yes, but for how long," Demeter said quietly.

**"Don't worry," Crusty told me, "These are stretching jobs. Maybe three extra inches on their spines. They might even live. Now why don't we find a bed you like, huh?"**

"He's sick," Thalia said.

"Yeah, I'd like to rip him in half!" Clarisse said.

**"Percy!" Grover yelled.**

**My mind was racing. I knew I couldn't take on this giant water-bed salesman alone. He would snap my neck before I ever got my sword out.**

"Don't give up," Clarisse said. "Only a coward would."

"What's he supposed to do," Rachel shot back. "Get his neck snapped."

"I agree," Sally said. "Let's not get any necks snapped."

**"Your real name's not Crusty, is it?" I asked.**

**"Legally, it's Procrustes," he admitted.**

**"The Stretcher," I said. I remembered the story: the giant who'd tried to kill Theseus with excess hospitality on his way to Athens.**

"He was crazy," Apollo said.

"Yes, now he's trying to kill another one of my sons," Poseidon muttered.

**"Yeah," the salesman said. "But who can pronounce **_**Procrustes? **_**Bad for business. Now 'Crusty,' anybody can say that."**

"Yeah but it's a stupid name," Leo said.

**"You're right. It's got a good ring to it."**

"Never mind…" Leo said slowly.

**His eyes lit up. "You think so?"**

**"Oh, absolutely," I said. "And the workmanship on these beds? Fabulous!"**

"What's he trying to do?" Thalia asked a little confused.

Athena, who was thinking for a solution, smiled at Percy's idea.

"Not bad Perseus, not bad," She said.

"Thank you Lady Athena."

**He grinned hugely, but his fingers didn't loosen on my neck. "I tell my customers that. Every time. Nobody bothers to look at the workmanship. How many built-in Lava Lamp headboards have you seen?"**

"I could easily make one," Hephaestus said. "Doesn't take a genius."

"I always loved lava lamps," Aphrodite thought. "Hey Hephaestus, could you make me one?"

Aphrodite batted her eye lashes at him and another blast of energy struck Hephaestus. His crippled leg straightened slightly and his body jerked forward in a normal stance.

"Uh sure…" He said quietly.

**"Not too many."**

**"That's right!"**

**"Percy!" Annabeth yelled. "What are you doing?"**

**"Don't mind her," I told Procrustes. "She's impossible."**

"AM NOT!" Annabeth yelled. Percy started to tickle her and she tickled him.

"Continue reading before I barf." Thalia said.

**The giant laughed. "All my customers are. Never six feet exactly. So inconsiderate. And then they complain about the fitting."**

**"What do you do if they're longer than six feet?"**

"Don't want to know," Hermes said.

**"Oh, that happens all the time. It's a simple fix."**

**He let go of my neck, but before I could react, he reached behind a nearby sales desk and brought out a huge double-bladed brass axe.**

"Nice choice," Ares said, pulling out his own double-bladed brass axe. "Nice weapon for a quick cut."

"You're insane," Demeter said.

"How is he our son?" Hera asked Zeus.

**He said, "I just center the subject as best I can and lop off whatever hangs over on either end."**

**"Ah," I said, swallowing hard. "Sensible."**

"Percy's going nuts!" Will said.

"No, I thought he was, but no," Annabeth said quickly and turned back to her small fight with Percy.

**"I'm so glad to come across an intelligent customer!"**

**The ropes were really stretching my friends now. Annabeth was turning pale. Grover made gurgling sounds, like a strangled goose.**

**"So, Crusty ..." I said, trying to keep my voice light. I glanced at the sales tag on the valentine-shaped Honeymoon Special. "Does this one really have dynamic stabilizers to stop wave motion?"**

**"Absolutely. Try it out."**

"He isn't that stupid," Rachel said.

**"Yeah, maybe I will. But would it work even for a big guy like you? No waves at all?"**

**"Guaranteed."**

**"No way."**

**"Way."**

**"Show me."**

"Not bad Seaweed Brain, not bad," Thalia nodded her head.

**He sat down eagerly on the bed, patted the mattress. "No waves. See?"**

**I snapped my fingers. **_**"Ergo."**_

"Wow, Crusty is an idiot," Travis said.

"No, Percy just handled the situation very well," Athena admitted. "He tricked him."

**Ropes lashed around Crusty and flattened him against the mattress.**

**"Hey!" he yelled.**

**"Center him just right," I said.**

**The ropes readjusted themselves at my command. Crusty's whole head stuck out the top. His feet stuck out the bottom.**

**"No!" he said. "Wait! This is just a demo."**

"There are no demos," Apollo cheered. "Pay backs a bitch."

"Language Apollo," Artemis said but smiled, happy that Crusty was going to get what he deserved.

**I uncapped Riptide. "A few simple adjustments ..."**

**I had no qualms about what I was about to do. If Crusty were human, I couldn't hurt him anyway. If he was a monster, he deserved to turn into dust for a while.**

**"You drive a hard bargain," he told me. "I'll give you thirty percent off on selected floor models.'"**

"Yes, after you tried to kill us," Annabeth shook her head.

**"I think I'll start with the top." I raised my sword.**

**"No money down! No interest for six months!"**

**I swung the sword. Crusty stopped making offers.**

"Good," Chiron said.

"Maybe," Conner said. "Percy should have seen what he could have got out of him."

"We were stretching to death," Annabeth pointed out.

"Good point," Conner said.

**I cut the ropes on the other beds. Annabeth and Grover got to their feet, groaning and wincing and cursing me a lot.**

**"You look taller," I said.**

**"Very funny," Annabeth said. "Be faster next time."**

"Really Annabeth, just be happy you're alive," Nico pointed out.

"I was, and I am," Annabeth said. She snuggled into Percy but that was a mistake as he started to tickle her again.

**I looked at the bulletin board behind Crusty's sales desk. There was an advertisement for Hermes Delivery Service, and another for the All-New Compendium of L.A. Area Monsters—"The only Monstrous Yellow Pages you'll ever need!" Under that, a bright orange flier for DOA Recording Studios, offering commissions for heroes' souls. "We are always looking for new talent!" DOA's address was right underneath with a map.**

**"Come on," I told my friends.**

**"Give us a minute," Grover complained. "We were almost stretched to death.'"**

**"Then you're ready for the Underworld," I said. "It's only a block from here."**

* * *

**Hey guys! I'm soooooooooooooooooooo sorry I haven't updated in a long time. I really should have updated but I forgoy. So this is your Christmas/ Hanuakah Present from me to you. I hope you guys review. Please review. I am a beta and I am betaing for Fantabulasogurl. You guys need to check out her fanfic called Royal Mistakes. Sorry again for the super late update and I will try to update soon. Happy Holidays!**


	27. Break

Hey Guys! So I am updating again. I want to thank all my reviewers. I love you all.

**Rick: Say it**

**Me: No**

**Rick: Say it or I will destroy the series**

**Me: You wouldn't**

**Rick: I would**

**Me: Fine. I don't own Percy Jackson.**

Now on with the story.

* * *

"Before we continue we should have a break." Zeus said. Everybody was just hanging out when there was a flash. Little mini people came in. A gray eyed girl came foward tentively.

"I'm Annabeth Chase. Daughter of Athena. 7 years old." A little boy looked up when she said her name. He was scared but by looking at her, it gave him courage.

"Percy Jackson, Son of Poseidon. 7 years old." It went on like that. In the end, there was a total of eight minis. Percy, Annabeth, Grover, Nico, Thalia, Piper, Jason, and Leo. Annabeth and Percy along with the rest were in awe over the younger ones. Before anybody could explain what they were doing, there was another flash and a red haired little girl appeared. She stated her name. Rachel. So in total it became nine. Aphrodite saw how the younger ones would sit next their friends. Piper, Jason, and Leo were together. Grover, Percy, Annabeth, Thalia, and Nico were together. Rachel sat near Percy. The gods decided that in order to make sure they wouldn't get confused, the teens would be called by their nicknames.

Annabeth- Annie/ Wisegirl

Percy- Perce/SeaweedBrain

Thalia- Thals/ Pinecone Face

Rachel- Red

Leo- Repair Boy

Jason- Sparky

Piper- Beauty Queen

Grover- G-man

Nico- Death Breath

The younger versions would be called by there names. Baby Percy would be called Baby Percy.** (Three Percys. Help us)** Percy explained to the ypunger ones that they were reading about what happens in the future for the youngs and the past for the teens.

"Well, let's get back to the book shall we." Zeus said. Everybody could tell that he was anxious to find out what happens to his bolt.

**"Annabeth Does Obedience School,**" Nico read.

* * *

Hope you guys enjoyed the update.

Whoever can answer this question, will be given a shout out.

State the entire prophecy for the Heroes of Olympus series.

**Seven Halfbloods-**

I gave you a hint. don't forget to review!


	28. You guys are the best

I reached more than 100 reviews! OH MY GODS! I love all of you. I promise I'll update soon. I just wanted to thank you guys for the 105 reviews! You guys are teh best. Anywho, I just have one more quick announcement. I have deleted my other stories because I had writer's block on them. But I do have another story post titled The Gods United ( An Adaptation. If you guys can PLEASE chack it out and review it I would love you and give thousands of Sally's blue cookies. Thank you again and I will update soon!


	29. Obedience school and poll results

Hey! I just want to thank all of you guys for your support! I appreciate it so much. Anywho, The winner of the question is... Drum roll please gabbie519! She was the first to answer it correctely. This chapter is dedicated to her. But thanks for all the reveiews! 120! I love you guys! Now, I also want to thank TomBomb12 for sending me the chapters. Now, on with the chapter and don't forget to read teh little A/N at the bottom for the next question(s) and to know the poll results! Also, let's pretend that the younger versions are asleep.

* * *

**18 ANNABETH DOES OBEDIENCE SCHOOL**

"You went to obendience school while my bolt wasn't returned?" Zeus yelled. Percy splashed him with water and Zeus was speechless when Baby Percy yelled at him.

**We stood in the shadows of Valencia Boulevard, looking up at gold letters etched in black marble: DOA RECORDING STUDIOS.**

**Underneath, stenciled on the glass doors: NO SOLICITORS. NO LOITERING. NO LIVING.**

"Looks like you can't go in." Leo said. Piper whacked him in the head.

**It was almost midnight, but the lobby was brightly lit and full of people. Behind the security desk sat a tough-looking guard with sunglasses and an earpiece.**

**I turned to my friends. "Okay. You remember the plan."**

**"The plan," Grover gulped. "Yeah. I love the plan."**

**Annabeth said, "What happens if the plan doesn't work?"**

**"Don't think negative."**

**"Right," she said. "We're entering the Land of the Dead, and I shouldn't think negative."**

"Gotta love your support." Thalia said sarcastically.

**I took the pearls out of my pocket, the three milky spheres the Nereid had given me in Santa Monica. They didn't seem like much of a backup in case something went wrong.**

**Annabeth put her hand on my shoulder. "I'm sorry, Percy. You're right, we'll make it. It'll be fine."**

**She gave Grover a nudge.**

**"Oh, right!" he chimed in. "We got this far. We'll find the master bolt and save your mom. No problem."**

**I looked at them both, and felt really grateful. Only a few minutes before, I'd almost gotten them stretched to death on deluxe water beds, and now they were trying to be brave for my sake, trying to make me feel better.**

I swear, Aphrodite was bawling her eyes out."

**I slipped the pearls back in my pocket. "Let's whup some Underworld butt."**

**We walked inside the DOA lobby.**

**Muzak played softly on hidden speakers. The carpet and walls were steel gray. Pencil cactuses grew in the corners like skeleton hands. The furniture was black leather, and every seat was taken. There were people sitting on couches, people standing up, people staring out the windows or waiting for the elevator. Nobody moved, or talked, or did much of anything. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see them all just fine, but if I focused on any one of them in particular, they started looking …transparent. I could see right through their bodies.**

**The security guard's desk was a raised podium, so we had to look up at him.**

**He was tall and elegant, with chocolate-colored skin and bleached-blond hair shaved military style. He wore tortoiseshell shades and a silk Italian suit that matched his hair. A black rose was pinned to his lapel under a silver name tag.**

**I read the name tag, then looked at him in bewilderment. "Your name is Chiron?"**

**He leaned across the desk. I couldn't see anything in his glasses except my own reflection, but his smile was sweet and cold, like a pythons, right before it eats you.**

**"What a precious young lad." He had a strange accent-British, maybe, but also as if he had learned English as a second language. "Tell me, mate, do I look like a centaur?"**

**"N-no."**

**"Sir," he added smoothly.**

**"Sir," I said.**

**He pinched the name tag and ran his finger under the letters. "Can you read this, mate? It says C-H-A-R-O-N. Say it with me: CARE-ON."**

"And nobody could give a care-on about it." Nico mumbled.

**"Charon."**

**"Amazing! Now: Mr. Charon."**

**"Mr. Charon," I said.**

**"Well done." He sat back. "I hate being confused with that old horse-man. And now, how may I help you little dead ones?"**

**His question caught in my stomach like a fastball. I looked at Annabeth for support.**

**"We want to go the Underworld," she said.**

**Charon's mouth twitched. "Well, that's refreshing."**

**"It is?" she asked.**

**"Straightforward and honest. No screaming. No 'There must be a mistake, Mr. Charon.'" He looked us over. "How did you die, then?"**

**I nudged Grover.**

**"Oh," he said. "Um … drowned… in the bathtub."**

**"All three of you?" Charon asked. We nodded.**

"What were you guys doing in there? Huh Percy?" Nico said while laughing. What he didn't expect was being dragged to the Atlantic and then coming back soaked and waiting for a certain somebody with a certain pen.

**"Big bathtub." Charon looked mildly impressed. "I don't suppose you have coins for passage. Normally, with adults, you see, I could charge your American Express, or add the ferry price to your last cable bill. But with children …alas, you never die prepared. Suppose you'll have to take a seat for a few centuries."**

**"Oh, but we have coins." I set three golden drachmas on the counter, part of the stash I'd found in Crusty's office desk.**

**"Well, now …" Charon moistened his lips. "Real drachmas. Real golden drachmas. I haven't seen these in …"**

**His fingers hovered greedily over the coins.**

**We were so close.**

**Then Charon looked at me. That cold stare behind his glasses seemed to bore a hole through my chest. "Here now," he said. "You couldn't read my name correctly. Are you dyslexic, lad?"**

**"No," I said. "I'm dead."**

**Charon leaned forward and took a sniff. "You're not dead. I should've known. You're a godling."**

**"We have to get to the Underworld," I insisted.**

**Charon made a growling sound deep in his throat.**

**Immediately, all the people in the waiting room got up and started pacing, agitated, lighting cigarettes, running hands through their hair, or checking their wristwatches.**

**"Leave while you can," Charon told us. "I'll just take these and forget I saw you."**

**He started to go for the coins, but I snatched them back.**

**"No service, no tip." I tried to sound braver than I felt.**

**Charon growled again-a deep, blood-chilling sound. The spirits of the dead started pounding on the elevator doors.**

**"It's a shame, too," I sighed. "We had more to offer."**

**I held up the entire bag from Crusty's stash. I took out a fistful of drachmas and let the coins spill through my fingers.**

**Charon's growl changed into something more like a lion's purr. "Do you think I can be bought, godling? Eh … just out of curiosity, how much have you got there?"**

**"A lot," I said. "I bet Hades doesn't pay you well enough for such hard work."**

**"Oh, you don't know the half of it. How would you like to babysit these spirits all day? Always 'Please don't let me be dead' or 'Please let me across for free.' I haven't had a pay raise in three thousand years. Do you imagine suits like this come cheap?"**

**"You deserve better," I agreed. "A little appreciation. Respect. Good pay."**

**With each word, I stacked another gold coin on the counter.**

**Charon glanced down at his silk Italian jacket, as if imagining himself in something even better. "I must say, lad, you're making some sense now. Just a little."**

**I stacked another few coins. "I could mention a pay raise while I'm talking to Hades."**

**He sighed. "The boat's almost full, anyway. I might as well add you three and be off."**

**He stood, scooped up our money, and said, "Come along."**

**We pushed through the crowd of waiting spirits, who started grabbing at our clothes like the wind, their voices whispering things I couldn't make out. Charon shoved them out of the way, grumbling, "Freeloaders."**

**He escorted us into the elevator, which was already crowded with souls of the dead, each one holding a green boarding pass. Charon grabbed two spirits who were trying to get on with us and pushed them back into the lobby.**

**"Right. Now, no one get any ideas while I'm gone," he announced to the waiting room. "And if anyone moves the dial off my easy-listening station again, I'll make sure you're here for another thousand years. Understand?"**

**He shut the doors. He put a key card into a slot in the elevator panel and we started to descend.**

**"What happens to the spirits waiting in the lobby?" Annabeth asked.**

**"Nothing," Charon said.**

**"For how long?"**

**"Forever, or until I'm feeling generous."**

"That is just mean." Hera said. Thalia, Jason, Percy, Annabeth, and all the other demigods stared with there mouths agape.

**"Oh," she said. "That's …fair."**

**Charon raised an eyebrow. "Whoever said death was fair, young miss? Wait until it's your turn. You'll die soon enough, where you're going."**

**"We'll get out alive," I said.**

**"Ha."**

**I got a sudden dizzy feeling. We weren't going down anymore, but forward. The air turned misty. Spirits around me started changing shape. Their modern clothes flickered, turning into gray hooded robes. The floor of the elevator began swaying.**

**I blinked hard. When I opened my eyes, Charon's creamy Italian suit had been replaced by a long black robe. His tortoiseshell glasses were gone. Where his eyes should've been were empty sockets-like Ares's eyes, except Charon's were totally dark, full of night and death and despair.**

**He saw me looking, and said, "Well?"**

**"Nothing," I managed.**

**I thought he was grinning, but that wasn't it. The flesh of his face was becoming transparent, letting me see straight through to his skull.**

**The floor kept swaying.**

**Grover said, "I think I'm getting seasick."**

**When I blinked again, the elevator wasn't an elevator anymore. We were standing in a wooden barge. Charon was poling us across a dark, oily river, swirling with bones, dead fish, and other, stranger things-plastic dolls, crushed carnations, soggy diplomas with gilt edges.**

**"The River Styx," Annabeth murmured. "It's so …"**

**"Polluted," Charon said. "For thousands of years, you humans have been throwing in everything as you come across-hopes, dreams, wishes that never came true. Irresponsible waste management, if you ask me."**

**Mist curled off the filthy water. Above us, almost lost in the gloom, was a ceiling of stalactites. Ahead, the far shore glimmered with greenish light, the color of poison.**

**Panic closed up my throat. What was I doing here? These people around me … they were dead.**

**Annabeth grabbed hold of my hand. **

"Cover your ears!" Percy shouted. Leo, being slow and stupid, heard the long and high pitched squeak that Aphrodite made.

**Under normal circumstances, this would've embarrassed me, but I understood how she felt. She wanted reassurance that somebody else was alive on this boat.**

**I found myself muttering a prayer, though I wasn't quite sure who I was praying to. Down here, only one god mattered, and he was the one I had come to confront.**

**The shoreline of the Underworld came into view. Craggy rocks and black volcanic sand stretched inland about a hundred yards to the base of a high stone wall, which marched off in either direction as far as we could see. A sound came from somewhere nearby in the green gloom, echoing off the stones-the howl of a large animal.**

**"Old Three-Face is hungry," Charon said. His smile turned skeletal in the greenish light. "Bad luck for you, godlings."**

**The bottom of our boat slid onto the black sand. The dead began to disembark. A woman holding a little girl's hand. An old man and an old woman hobbling along arm in arm. A boy no older than I was, shuffling silently along in his gray robe.**

**Charon said, "I'd wish you luck, mate, but there isn't any down here. Mind you, don't forget to mention my pay raise."**

**He counted our golden coins into his pouch, then took up his pole. He warbled something that sounded like a Barry Manilow song as he ferried the empty barge back across the river.**

**We followed the spirits up a well-worn path.**

**I'm not sure what I was expecting-Pearly Gates, or a big black portcullis, or something. But the entrance to the Underworld looked like a cross between airport security and the Jersey Turnpike.**

**There were three separate entrances under one huge black archway that said YOU ARE NOW ENTERING EREBUS. Each entrance had a pass-through metal detector with security cameras mounted on top. Beyond this were tollbooths manned by black-robed ghouls like Charon.**

**The howling of the hungry animal was really loud now, but I couldn't see where it was coming from. The three-headed dog, Cerberus, who was supposed to guard Hades's door, was nowhere to be seen.**

**The dead queued up in the three lines, two marked ATTENDANT ON DUTY, and one marked EZ DEATH. The EZ DEATH line was moving right along. The other two were crawling.**

**"What do you figure?" I asked Annabeth.**

**"The fast line must go straight to the Asphodel Fields," she said. "No contest. They don't want to risk judgment from the court, because it might go against them."**

**"There's a court for dead people?"**

**"Yeah. Three judges. They switch around who sits on the bench. King Minos, Thomas Jefferson, Shakespeare-people like that. Sometimes they look at a life and decide that person needs a special reward-the Fields of Elysium. Sometimes they decide on punishment. But most people, well, they just lived. Nothing special, good or bad. So they go to the Asphodel Fields."**

**"And do what?"**

**Grover said, "Imagine standing in a wheat field in Kansas. Forever."**

**"Harsh," I said.**

**"Not as harsh as that," Grover muttered. "Look."**

**A couple of black-robbed ghouls had pulled aside one spirit and were frisking him at the security desk. The face of the dead man looked vaguely familiar.**

**"He's that preacher who made the news, remember?" Grover asked.**

**"Oh, yeah." I did remember now. We'd seen him on TV a couple of times at the Yancy Academy dorm. He was this annoying televangelist from upstate New York who'd raised millions of dollars for orphanages and then got caught spending the money on stuff for his mansion, like gold-plated toilet seats, and an indoor putt-putt golf course. He'd died in a police chase when his "Lamborghini for the Lord" went off a cliff.**

**I said, "What're they doing to him?"**

**"Special punishment from Hades," Grover guessed. "The really bad people get his personal attention as soon as they arrive. The Fur-the Kindly Ones will set up an eternal torture for him."**

**The thought of the Furies made me shudder. I realized I was in their home territory now. Old Mrs. Dodds would be licking her lips with anticipation.**

**"But if he's a preacher," I said, "and he believes in a different hell… ."**

**Grover shrugged. "Who says he's seeing this place the way we're seeing it? Humans see what they want to see. You're very stubborn-er, persistent, that way."**

**We got closer to the gates. The howling was so loud now it shook the ground at my feet, but I still couldn't figure out where it was coming from.**

**Then, about fifty feet in front of us, the green mist shimmered. Standing just where the path split into three lanes was an enormous shadowy monster.**

**I hadn't seen it before because it was half transparent, like the dead. Until it moved, it blended with whatever was behind it. Only its eyes and teeth looked solid. And it was staring straight at me.**

**My jaw hung open. All I could think to say was, "He's a Rottweiler."**

**I'd always imagined Cerberus as a big black mastiff. But he was obviously a purebred Rottweiler, except of course that he was twice the size of a woolly mammoth, mostly invisible, and had three heads.**

**The dead walked right up to him-no fear at all. The ATTENDANT ON DUTY lines parted on either side of him. The EZ DEATH spirits walked right between his front paws and under his belly, which they could do without even crouching.**

**"I'm starting to see him better," I muttered. "Why is that?"**

**"I think …" Annabeth moistened her lips. "I'm afraid it's because we're getting closer to being dead."**

Aphrodite, Poseidon, Athena, Sally, and the other demigods glareed at Hades who quickly put on his cap to avoid the glares. But Hermes took a paint bucket and poured it onto the invisible Hades.

**The dog's middle head craned toward us. It sniffed the air and growled.**

**"It can smell the living," I said.**

**"But that's okay," Grover said, trembling next to me. "Because we have a plan."**

**"Right," Annabeth said. I'd never heard her voice sound quite so small. "A plan."**

**We moved toward the monster.**

**The middle head snarled at us, then barked so loud my eyeballs rattled.**

**"Can you understand it?" I asked Grover.**

**"Oh yeah," he said. "I can understand it."**

**"What's it saying?"**

**"I don't think humans have a four-letter word that translates, exactly."**

**I took the big stick out of my backpack-a bedpost I'd broken off Crusty's Safari Deluxe floor model. I held it up, and tried to channel happy dog thoughts toward Cerberus-Alpo commercials, cute little puppies, fire hydrants. I tried to smile, like I wasn't about to die.**

**"Hey, Big Fella," I called up. "I bet they don't play with you much."**

**"GROWWWLLLL!"**

**"Good boy," I said weakly.**

**I waved the stick. The dog's middle head followed the movement. The other two heads trained their eyes on me, completely ignoring the spirits. I had Cerberus's undivided attention. I wasn't sure that was a good thing.**

**"Fetch!" I threw the stick into the gloom, a good solid throw. I heard it go ker-sploosh in the River Styx.**

**Cerberus glared at me, unimpressed. His eyes were baleful and cold.**

**So much for the plan.**

**Cerberus was now making a new kind of growl, deeper down in his three throats.**

**"Um," Grover said. "Percy?"**

**"Yeah?"**

**"I just thought you'd want to know."**

**"Yeah?"**

**"Cerberus? He's saying we've got ten seconds to pray to the god of our choice. After that… well… he's hungry."**

**"Wait!" Annabeth said. She started rifling through her pack.**

**Uh-oh, I thought.**

**"Five seconds," Grover said. "Do we run now?"**

**Annabeth produced a red rubber ball the size of a grapefruit. It was labeled WATERLAND, DENVER, CO. Before I could stop her, she raised the ball and marched straight up to Cerberus.**

**She shouted, "See the ball? You want the ball, Cerberus? Sit!"**

**Cerberus looked as stunned as we were.**

Nico was laughing so hard, it was making him cry.

**All three of his heads cocked sideways. Six nostrils dilated.**

**"Sit!" Annabeth called again.**

**I was sure that any moment she would become the world's largest Milkbone dog biscuit.**

**But instead, Cerberus licked his three sets of lips, shifted on his haunches, and sat, immediately crushing a dozen spirits who'd been passing underneath him in the EZ DEATH line. The spirits made muffled hisses as they dissipated, like the air let out of tires.**

**Annabeth said, "Good boy!"**

**She threw Cerberus the ball.**

**He caught it in his middle mouth. It was barely big enough for him to chew, and the other heads started snapping at the middle, trying to get the new toy.**

**"Drop it.'" Annabeth ordered.**

**Cerberus's heads stopped fighting and looked at her. The ball was wedged between two of his teeth like a tiny piece of gum. He made a loud, scary whimper, then dropped the ball, now slimy and bitten nearly in half, at Annabeth's feet.**

**"Good boy." She picked up the ball, ignoring the monster spit all over it.**

**She turned toward us. "Go now. EZ DEATH line-it's faster."**

**I said, "But-"**

**"Now.'" She ordered, in the same tone she was using on the dog.**

**Grover and I inched forward warily.**

**Cerberus started to growl.**

**"Stay!" Annabeth ordered the monster. "If you want the ball, stay!"**

**Cerberus whimpered, but he stayed where he was.**

**"What about you?" I asked Annabeth as we passed her.**

**"I know what I'm doing, Percy," she muttered. "At least, I'm pretty sure… ."**

**Grover and I walked between the monster's legs.**

**Please, Annabeth, I prayed. Don't tell him to sit again.**

**We made it through. Cerberus wasn't any less scary-looking from the back.**

**Annabeth said, "Good dog!"**

**She held up the tattered red ball, and probably came to the same conclusion I did-if she rewarded Cerberus, there'd be nothing left for another trick.**

**She threw the ball anyway. The monster's left mouth immediately snatched it up, only to be attacked by the middle head, while the right head moaned in protest.**

**While the monster was distracted, Annabeth walked briskly under its belly and joined us at the metal detector.**

**"How did you do that?" I asked her, amazed.**

**"Obedience school," she said breathlessly, and I was surprised to see there were tears in her eyes. "When I was little, at my dad's house, we had a Doberman…."**

**"Never mind that," Grover said, tugging at my shirt. "Come on!"**

**We were about to bolt through the EZ DEATH line when Cerberus moaned pitifully from all three mouths. Annabeth stopped.**

Annabeth frowned, remebering the promise she never kept. She went up to Hades, and asked him something. Three seconds later, a little three headed dog came. As soon as Cerberus saw Annabeth, he started to lick her face. Annabeth had found a ball and was playing with Cerberus. It wasn't until Cerberus had stolen Percy's spot that Percy got mad. He pouted while Thail, Nico and Annabeth laughed.

**She turned to face the dog, which had done a one-eighty to look at us.**

**Cerberus panted expectantly, the tiny red ball in pieces in a puddle of drool at its feet.**

**"Good boy," Annabeth said, but her voice sounded melancholy and uncertain.**

**The monster's heads turned sideways, as if worried about her.**

**"I'll bring you another ball soon," Annabeth promised faintly. "Would you like that?"**

**The monster whimpered. I didn't need to speak dog to know Cerberus was still waiting for the ball.**

**"Good dog. I'll come visit you soon. I-I promise." Annabeth turned to us. "Let's go."**

**Grover and I pushed through the metal detector, which immediately screamed and set off flashing red lights. "Unauthorized possessions! Magic detected!"**

**Cerberus started to bark.**

**We burst through the EZ DEATH gate, which started even more alarms blaring, and raced into the Underworld.**

**A few minutes later, we were hiding, out of breath, in the rotten trunk of an immense black tree as security ghouls scuttled past, yelling for backup from the Furies.**

**Grover murmured, "Well, Percy, what have we learned today?"**

**"That three-headed dogs prefer red rubber balls over sticks?"**

**"No," Grover told me. "We've learned that your plans really, really bite!"**

"My plans have totally worked before." Percy mumbled. Thalia stared at him like he was crazy.

**I wasn't sure about that. I thought maybe Annabeth and I had both had the right idea. Even here in the Underworld, everybody-even monsters-needed a little attention once in a while.**

**I thought about that as we waited for the ghouls to pass. I pretended not to see Annabeth wipe a tear from her cheek as she listened to the mournful keening of Cerberus in the distance, longing for his new friend.**

"Who wants to read next?" Piper asked as she marked the page. Nico got up and took the book from her hand.

* * *

So what did you think? Please review. Here is the question-

When was the first time Percy and Annabeth kissed? Name the situation and the book.

Poll results:

Beckendorf-11

Silena-10

Bianca-9

Baby Annabeth-9

Luke-4

The people who I will bring in will be all of them except Luke. I really just needed to see what my readers thought. And who I should bring in first. So. don't forget to review and you guys are AWESOME.


	30. Chapter 30

Happy New Year everybody! I know you think this is a chapter, but it isn't. I just wanted to say Happy New Year!


	31. Zeus and Hades are scum bags

"**We Find out the Truth, Sort of," **Nico read.

"It's about time," Leo huffed. "I'm so confused."

"It read 'sort of'," Jason added. "So maybe not all."

"As long as I'm not blamed," Hades said.

"You won't be Uncle." Percy said.

**Imagine the largest concert crowd you've ever seen, a foot ball field packed with a million fans.**

**Now imagine a field a million times that big, packed with people, and imagine the electricity has gone out, and there is no noise, no light, no beach ball bouncing around over the crowd. Something tragic has happened backstage. Whispering masses of people are just milling around in the shadows, waiting for a concert that will never start.**

"Well that sucks," Apollo said. "Everyone loves a good concert."

"You're missing the point," Artemis grumbled.

"**If you can picture that, you have a pretty good idea what the Fields of Asphodel looked like. The black grass had been trampled by eons of dead feet. A warm, moist wind blew like the breath of a swamp. Black trees—Grover told me they were poplars—grew in clumps here and there.**

**The cavern ceiling was so high above us it might've been a bank of storm clouds, except for the stalactites, which glowed faint gray and looked wickedly pointed. I tried not to imagine they'd fall on us at any moment, but dotted around the fields were several that had fallen and impaled themselves in the black grass. I guess the dead didn't have to worry about little hazards like being speared by stalactites the size of booster rockets.**

"It was scary," Grover shuddered. Annabeth shivered as she tought about what happened in "there." Percy rubbed her back soothingly.

"Not really," Nico defended.

"Well obviously to you it's not," Travis said.

**Annabeth, Grover, and I tried to blend into the crowd, keeping an eye out for security ghouls. I couldn't help looking for familiar faces among the spirits of Asphodel, but the dead are hard to look at. Their faces shimmer. They all look slightly angry or confused. They will come up to you and speak, but their voices sound like chatter, like bats twittering. Once they realize you can't understand them, they frown and move away.**

**The dead aren't scary. They're just sad.**

"Well obviously," Clarisse grumbled. "I never met someone happy to die."

"Yeah, especially if they're going to be walking around eternity doing nothing," Chris added.

"Throw in a water park or something," Conner offered.

"If I did that, what would be the point of dying?" Hades asked. "They're supposed to suffer, not have fun."

"I agree with Conner," Hermes smiled. "A water park would definitely do them good."

"As would a mute button for you," Hades grumbled. "But we don't always get what we want."

**We crept along, following the line of new arrivals that snaked from the main gates toward a black-tented pavilion with a banner that read:**

_**JUDGMENTS FOR ELYSIUM AND ETERNAL DAMNATION**_

_**Welcome, Newly Deceased!**_

"That sounds so happy." Athena said with sarcasm.

**Out the back of the tent came two much smaller lines.**

**To the left, spirits flanked by security ghouls were marched down a rocky path toward the Fields of Punishment, which glowed and smoked in the distance, a vast, cracked wasteland with rivers of lava and minefields and miles of barbed wire separating the different torture areas. Even from far away, I could see people being chased by hellhounds, burned at the stake, forced to run naked through cactus patches or listen to opera music.**

Hades eyed the demigods. "This is what happened when you aren't nice," He chuckled.

"You're dad's scary," Will whispered to Nico.

"Don't worry," Nico reassured him. "I can guarantee that we all have passes to Elysium. I mean, Luke made it, so we'll make it for sure."

"Still doesn't mean he isn't scary."

Annabeth, Percy, Thalia, and Grover smiled when they heard that Luke made it to Elysium.

**I could just make out a tiny hill, with the ant-size figure of Sisyphus struggling to move his boulder to the top. And I saw worse tortures, too—things I don't want to describe.**

**The line coming from the right side of the judgment pavilion was much better. This one led down toward a small valley surrounded by walls—a gated community, which seemed to be the only happy part of the Underworld. Beyond the security gate were neighborhoods of beautiful houses from every time period in history, Roman villas and medieval castles and Victorian mansions. Silver and gold flowers bloomed on the lawns. The grass rippled in rainbow colors. I could hear laughter and smell barbecue cooking.**

**Elysium.**

"Ah, sounds awesome," Conner said dreamily. "I mean, they're having a barbecue."

"We have that at camp too," Chris said.

"Yeah I know, but it's not the same."

**In the middle of that valley was a glittering blue lake, with three small islands like a vacation resort in the Bahamas. The Isles of the Blest, for people who had chosen to be reborn three times, and three times achieved Elysium. Immediately I knew that's where I wanted to go when I died.**

"Lets not talk about dying," Poseidon said.

"He said 'when'," Thalia pointed out. "Besides, Percy is a lock inside there."

"Maybe, but I still don't like death," Poseidon said.

**"That's what it's all about," Annabeth said, like she was reading my thoughts. "That's the place for heroes."**

"Which we all are," Percy said. "Well…maybe not Nico."

"I'm a hero," He whined.

"A whiney hero," Jason whispered to Leo who laughed.

"I heard that!" Percy splashed him with water to shut him up.

**But I thought of how few people there were in Elysium, how tiny it was compared to the Fields of Asphodel or even the Fields of Punishment. So few people did good in their lives. It was depressing.**

"It is," Hestia said. She turned to Hades. "Or maybe you judge to hard?"

"No," Hades said, as if a little sad as well. "Mortals aren't the same as they used to. They take advantage of what they've been given."

**We left the judgment pavilion and moved deeper into the Asphodel Fields. It got darker. The colors faded from our clothes. The crowds of chattering spirits began to thin.**

**After a few miles of walking, we began to hear a familiar screech in the distance. Looming on the horizon was a palace of glittering black obsidian. Above the parapets swirled three dark batlike creatures: the Furies. I got the feeling they were waiting for us.**

**"I suppose it's too late to turn back," Grover said wistfully.**

**"We'll be okay." I tried to sound confident.**

**"Maybe we should search some of the other places first," Grover suggested. "Like, Elysium, for instance …"**

"Nice Grover," Rachel laughed.

"In my defense, if the world was ending, I might as well get a good look at the place," Grover defended.

"Yeah but the world didn't end," Annabeth countered.

"But it almost did." Annabeth looked grim at that and Percy glared at Grover.

"So many were lost Percy." She whispered quitely.

"I know. But they're in Elysium."

**"Come on, goat boy." Annabeth grabbed his arm.**

"I just wish that one time, someone wouldn't call me goat boy," Grover sighed.

"Not a chance goat boy," Thalia threw her arm around her friend.

**Grover yelped. His sneakers sprouted wings and his legs shot forward, pulling him away from Annabeth. He landed flat on his back in the grass.**

**"Grover," Annabeth chided. "Stop messing around."**

"Wrong time to fly Grover," Hermes laughed. "Oops, I mean goat boy." Annabeth, Percy, and Grover shared a look, knowing what was about to happen.

**"But I didn't—"**

**He yelped again. His shoes were flapping like crazy now. They levitated off the ground and started dragging him away from us.**

_**"Maia!" **_**he yelled, but the magic word seemed to have no effect. **_**"Maia, **_**already! Nine-one-one! Help!"**

"I highly doubt that the cops would know what to do," Chris said.

"Yeah," Jason agreed. "Besides, you're in the underworld."

"Oh, I'm sorry," Grover faked innocence. "Maybe next time I'm in the underworld with uncontrollable shoes, I'll call you two."

**I got over being stunned and made a grab for Grover's hand, but too late. He was picking up speed, skidding downhill like a bobsled.**

**We ran after him.**

**Annabeth shouted, "Untie the shoes!"**

"Obviously," Nico said. Annabeth smacked Nico upside the head.

**It was a smart idea, but I guess it's not so easy when your shoes are pulling you along feetfirst at full speed. Grover tried to sit up, but he couldn't get close to the laces.**

"Just cut his legs off," Dionysus offered.

"Cut off his legs and you WILL regret it." Annabeth, Percy, Thalia, Nico, and the other demigods said in unision. Even Clarisse. Dionysus cowered in fear.

**We kept after him, trying to keep him in sight as he ripped between the legs of spirits who chattered at him in annoyance.**

**I was sure Grover was going to barrel straight through the gates of Hades's palace, but his shoes veered sharply to the right and dragged him in the opposite direction.**

"Are they supposed to do that?" Hephaestus asked Hermes.

"No," Hermes shook his head. "Unless they were made for a prank and Luke got the wrong ones."

_Or maybe Luke tried to kill me. _Grover thought.

_But it wasn't really his fault._ Percy thought. Grover felt what Percy said and bowed his head.

**The slope got steeper. Grover picked up speed. Annabeth and I had to sprint to keep up. The cavern walls narrowed on either side, and I realized we'd entered some kind of side tunnel. No black grass or trees now, just rock underfoot, and the dim light of the stalactites above.**

**"Grover!" I yelled, my voice echoing. "Hold on to something!"**

**"What?" he yelled back.**

**He was grabbing at gravel, but there was nothing big enough to slow him down.**

"Is he calling me fat?" Grover asked. Everybody was cracking up.

"No," Nico rolled his eyes. "You sound like one of the Aphrodite guys."

**The tunnel got darker and colder. The hairs on my arms bristled. It smelled evil down here. It made me think of things I shouldn't even know about—blood spilled on an ancient stone altar, the foul breath of a murderer.**

**Then I saw what was ahead of us, and I stopped dead in my tracks.**

**The tunnel widened into a huge dark cavern, and in the middle was a chasm the size of a city block.**

"Tartarus," Most whispered.

"Why are you going down there?" Leo asked.

"He's probably doing it," Demeter looked at Hades.

Hades shrugged. "I have the power, but what good would that do? It's just a satyr."

"Just a satyr," Grover grumbled. Percy, Annabeth, Thalia, and Nico whipped out there weapons and started to "play" with them while glaring at Hades.

**Grover was sliding straight toward the edge.**

**"Come on, Percy!" Annabeth yelled, tugging at my wrist.**

**"But that's—"**

**"I know!" she shouted. "The place you described in your dream! But Grover's going to fall if we don't catch him." She was right, of course. Grover's predicament got me moving again.**

"Oh please don't die," Aphrodite cried.

**He was yelling, clawing at the ground, but the winged shoes kept dragging him toward the pit, and it didn't look like we could possibly get to him in time.**

**What saved him were his hooves.**

"Well they had to be good for something," Conner laughed.

"You want one in your ass?" Grover asked.

"Dude, that's gross," Travis gagged.

**The flying sneakers had always been a loose fit on him, and finally Grover hit a big rock and the left shoe came flying off. It sped into the darkness, down into the chasm. The right shoe kept tugging him along, but not as fast. Grover was able to slow himself down by grabbing on to the big rock and using it like an anchor.**

**He was ten feet from the edge of the pit when we caught him and hauled him back up the slope. The other winged shoe tugged itself off, circled around us angrily and kicked our heads in protest before flying off into the chasm to join its twin.**

"It actually kicked you?" Thalia laughed, along with the others.

"Yeah," Annabeth grumbled. "It hurt too."

"That's an awesome prank," Travis said. "I'd love to get that on video." Percy had scowled as he remebered how he had gotten a big bump.

**We all collapsed, exhausted, on the obsidian gravel. My limbs felt like lead. Even my backpack seemed heavier, as if somebody had filled it with rocks.**

**Grover was scratched up pretty bad. His hands were bleeding. His eyes had gone slit-pupiled, goat style, the way they did whenever he was terrified.**

"So like usual," Clarisse offered.

"I'm not that bad," Grover complained.

"Dude, you're about as scary and threatening as a box of baby kittens," Chris said to him.

"But vicious right," Grover asked. He turned to Cerberus. "I mean, look at that dog, he's small but vicious."

To prove his point, Cerberus barked at Grover. "See, vicious little monster."

"Continue demigod," Zeus said. Percy and Annabeth hid there laughter because the wy Zeus said demigod, it sounded like he was talking to an adult. It seemed like Zeus was scared of the demigods.

**"I don't know how ..." he panted. "I didn't..."**

**"Wait," I said. "Listen."**

**I heard something—a deep whisper in the darkness.**

**Another few seconds, and Annabeth said, "Percy, this place—"**

**"Shh." I stood.**

**The sound was getting louder, a muttering, evil voice from far, far below us. Coming from the pit.**

"Well don't listen," Hera shouted. "Do you have any idea who is in there?"

"I think he does," Chiron whispered.

**Grover sat up. "Wh—what's that noise?"**

**Annabeth heard it too, now. I could see it in her eyes. "Tartarus. The entrance to Tartarus." I uncapped Anaklusmos.**

"Not going to do anything," Ares said.

"Has anybody else noticed how quiet the younger ones have been?" Hera asked. Everbody turned around and saw that they were all asleep. Thalia and Nico were on top of each other. Annabeth had her head on Percy's chest. Jason had his arms around Piper. Grover was muttering food. Rachel was snoring lightly. Aphrodite sighed with content as she noticed the couples. There was on she didn't expect. Thalia and Nico. She looked at the older versions and noticed how they kept looking at each other when nobody noticed.

"I need to talk to Thalia after this chapter is finished." Aphrodite said. Nobody objected.

**The bronze sword expanded, gleaming in the darkness, and the evil voice seemed to falter, just for a moment, before resuming its chant.**

**I could almost make out words now, ancient, ancient words, older even than Greek. As if ...**

**"Magic," I said.**

**"We have to get out of here," Annabeth said.**

"Good," Athena said. She hated that her daughter was only a couple of feet away from a true monster in Kronos. "The faster the better."

**Together, we dragged Grover to his hooves and started back up the tunnel. My legs wouldn't move fast enough. My backpack weighed me down. **

**The voice got louder and angrier behind us, and we broke into a run.**

**Not a moment too soon.**

**A cold blast of wind pulled at our backs, as if the entire pit were inhaling. For a terrifying moment, I lost ground, my feet slipping in the gravel. If we'd been any closer to the edge, we would've been sucked in.**

**We kept struggling forward, and finally reached the top of the tunnel, where the cavern widened out into the Fields of Asphodel. The wind died. A wail of outrage echoed from deep in the tunnel. Something was not happy we'd gotten away.**

"There, case closed," Zeus said to the others. "He's trapped."

"You're blind," Poseidon said. "Do you really think he would escape if Grover fell into the pit?"

"Well I don't see him out of it, so case closed," Zeus shot back.

"No," Poseidon said. "You may live in fear, but we must prepare if are darkest fears are coming true."

"He sees sense Zeus," Hera whispered. "We should still discuss after the reading."

"Fine," He grumbled. "Read on."

**"What **_**was **_**that?" Grover panted, when **_**we'd **_**collapsed in the relative safety of a black poplar grove. "One of Hades's pets?"**

"Unfortunately it wasn't," Hades said.

**Annabeth and I looked at each other. I could tell she was nursing an idea, probably the same one she'd gotten during the taxi ride to L.A., but she was too scared to share it. That was enough to terrify me.**

**I capped my sword, put the pen back in my pocket. "Let's keep going." I looked at Grover. "Can you walk?"**

**He swallowed. "Yeah, sure. I never liked those shoes, anyway."**

"Well after they tried to kill you I wouldn't think so," Artemis said.

**He tried to sound brave about it, but he was trembling as badly as Annabeth and I were. Whatever was in that pit was nobody's pet. It was unspeakably old and powerful. Even Echidna hadn't given me that feeling. I was almost relieved to turn my back on that tunnel and head toward the palace of Hades.**

"Stupid palace," Demeter whispered before reading again.

**Almost.**

**The Furies circled the parapets, high in the gloom. The outer walls of the fortress glittered black, and the two-story-tall bronze gates stood wide open.**

**Up close, I saw that the engravings on the gates were scenes of death. Some were from modern times—an atomic bomb exploding over a city, a trench filled with gas mask-wearing soldiers, a line of African famine victims waiting with empty bowls—but all of them looked as if they'd been etched into the bronze thousands of years ago. I wondered if I was looking at prophecies that had come true.**

**Inside the courtyard was the strangest garden I'd ever seen. Multicolored mushrooms, poisonous shrubs, and weird luminous plants grew without sunlight. Precious jewels made up for the lack of flowers, piles of rubies as big as my fist, clumps of raw diamonds. Standing here and there like frozen party guests were Medusa's garden statues— petrified children, satyrs, and centaurs—all smiling grotesquely.**

**In the center of the garden was an orchard of pomegranate trees, their orange blooms neon bright in the dark. "The garden of Persephone," Annabeth said. "Keep walking."**

"Ah, my daughter's garden," Demeter glared at Hades. "Nice to know that you gave her that."

"Just read," Hades snapped. "No one wants to hear your big mouth."

"Why don't I take a sword and shove it up your big a−"

"MOM," Katie yelled. "This is embarrassing."

"She's right," Travis agreed. "You guys bicker like an old married couple."

"WHAT!" Both screamed.

"That got them," Katie whispered to Travis as the two laughed.

"Read," Athena said.

**I understood why she wanted to move on. The tart smell of those pomegranates was almost overwhelming. I had a sudden desire to eat them, but then I remembered the story of Persephone. One bite of Underworld food, and we would never be able to leave. **

**I pulled Grover away to keep him from picking a big juicy one.**

**We walked up the steps of the palace, between black columns, through a black marble portico, and into the house of Hades. The entry hall had a polished bronze floor, which seemed to boil in the reflected torchlight. There was no ceiling, just the cavern roof, far above. I guess they never had to worry about rain down here.**

"Hey Uncle Hades," Apollo got his attention. "You think one time we could…"

"No," Hades snapped. "You aren't going to invite strippers and party at my palace."

"Wasn't the plan," Apollo said. "But now that you mention it…"

"You're disgusting," Artemis spat.

"It's still a no," Hades said.

"You know," Apollo ignored Artemis. "I could always say that you and Po−"

"I'll call the strippers," Hades yelled, and then glared at Apollo.

"Nice sunshine," Hermes whispered. "Blackmail. But what was it that you blackmailing him with?"

"I'll tell you later."

**Every side doorway was guarded by a skeleton in military gear. Some wore Greek armor, some British redcoat uniforms, some camouflage with tattered American flags on the shoulders. They carried spears or muskets or M-16s. None of them bothered us, but their hollow eye sockets followed us as we walked down the hall, toward the big set of doors at the opposite end.**

**Two U.S. Marine skeletons guarded the doors. They grinned down at us, rocket-propelled grenade launchers held across their chests.**

**"You know," Grover mumbled, "I bet Hades doesn't have trouble with door-to-door salesmen."**

"Not at all," Hades smirked at Grover.

**My backpack weighed a ton now. **

"What did you do?" Athena asked Ares. "The closer he gets, the heavier the bag weighs?"

"Don't know, don't care," Ares said. Aphrodite threw a lipstick at Ares that turned into a knife half way there.

**I couldn't figure out why. I wanted to open it, check to see if I had somehow picked up a stray bowling ball, but this wasn't the time.**

**"Well, guys," I said. "I suppose we should ... knock?"**

"It would be rude if you didn't," Hades smiled.

"Like he cares," Travis whispered to Nico and Conner.

**A hot wind blew down the corridor, and the doors swung open. The guards stepped aside.**

**"I guess that means **_**entrez-vous," **_**Annabeth said.**

"Ah, the language of love," Aphrodite smiled. She turned to Annabeth. "You know French?"

"Barely," Annabeth said. "I just read a few books with some quotes and stuff."

**The room inside looked just like in my dream, except this time the throne of Hades was occupied.**

**He was the third god I'd met, but the first who really struck me as godlike.**

"That's right boys," Hades smirked at Ares and Dionysus. "Maybe if you weren't an uptight ass and lazy drunk, you'd be considered godly."

"Maybe if I crack your face with an axe, you'll shut that mouth of yours," Ares shouted back.

"Yeah, "Dionysus cheered from the sidelines.

"Way to man up," Apollo whispered to him.

**He was at least ten feet tall, for one thing, and dressed in black silk robes and a crown of braided gold. His skin was albino white, his hair shoulder-length and jet black. He wasn't bulked up like Ares, but he radiated power. He lounged on his throne of fused human bones, looking lithe, graceful, and dangerous as a panther.**

"Good description," Hades nodded at his nephew. "Now let's see if I'll kill you."

**I immediately felt like he should be giving the orders. He knew more than I did. He should be my master. **

"I like this one," Hades smiled at Poseidon and then at Sally. "You taught the boy manners."

"He just hasn't seen a real god, or his father," Poseidon said.

"HEY!"

**Then I told myself to snap out of it.**

**Hades's aura was affecting me, just as Ares's had. The Lord of the Dead resembled pictures I'd seen of Adolph Hitler, or Napoleon, or the terrorist leaders who direct suicide bombers. Hades had the same intense eyes, the same kind of mesmerizing, evil charisma.**

"You see that, you're a creep and a weirdo with freaky eyes," Demeter shouted at him.

**"You are brave to come here, Son of Poseidon," he said in an oily voice. "After what you have done to me, very brave indeed. Or perhaps you are simply very foolish."**

"He's braver than you," Annabeth said. "If what Percy and Nico have told me, he whipped your butt." Percy was smirking.

"Hold up," Athena said. "Why did he say 'what you have done to me'?"

"Probably the oath," Artemis said.

**Numbness crept into my joints, tempting me to lie down and just take a little nap at Hades's feet. Curl up here and sleep forever.**

**I fought the feeling and stepped forward. I knew what I had to say. "Lord and Uncle, I come with two requests."**

Hades wisley didn't say anything.

**Hades raised an eyebrow. When he sat forward in his throne, shadowy faces appeared in the folds of his black robes, faces of torment, as if the garment were stitched of trapped souls from the Fields of Punishment, trying to get out. The ADHD part of me wondered, off-task, whether the rest of his clothes were made the same way. What horrible things would you have to do in your life to get woven into Hades's underwear?**

**"Only two requests?" Hades said. "Arrogant child. As if you have not already taken enough. Speak, then. It amuses me not to strike you dead yet."**

"I'm confused," Was the answer from most.

**I swallowed. This was going about as well as I'd feared.**

**I glanced at the empty, smaller throne next to Hades's. It was shaped like a black flower, gilded with gold. I wished Queen Persephone were here. I recalled something in the myths about how she could calm her husband's moods. **

Demeter glared at Hades.

**But it was summer. Of course, Persephone would be above in the world of light with her mother, the goddess of agriculture, Demeter. Her visits, not the tilt of the planet, create the seasons.**

**Annabeth cleared her throat. Her finger prodded me in the back.**

**"Lord Hades," I said. "Look, sir, there can't be a war among the gods. It would be ... bad."**

**"Really bad," Grover added helpfully.**

"You grew a pair Grover," Will nudged him.

"Well I had to say something," Grover said. Percy looked at his friend with respect.

**"Return Zeus's master bolt to me," I said. "Please, sir. Let me carry it to Olympus."**

"Listen to the boy," Zeus encouraged.

"Shut up," Hera said, "here we have one of the bravest demigods of all time, and all you care about is your stupid bolt." Annabeth stared in awe at Hera. Hera never cared about any hero.

**Hades's eyes grew dangerously bright. "You dare keep up this pretense, after what you have done?"**

"Now what's going on," Apollo asked.

**I glanced back at my friends. They looked as confused as I was.**

**"Um ... Uncle," I said. "You keep saying 'after what you've done.' What exactly have I done?"**

"The million dollar question," Hermes said.

**The throne room shook with a tremor so strong, they probably felt it upstairs in Los Angeles. Debris fell from the cavern ceiling. Doors burst open all along the walls, and skeletal warriors marched in, hundreds of them, from every time period and nation in Western civilization. They lined the perimeter of the room, blocking the exits.**

**Hades bellowed, "Do you think I **_**want **_**war, godling?"**

**I wanted to say, **_**Well, these guys don't look like peace activists.**_

"He has a point," Nico laughed.

"Well I need servants," Hades said.

**But I thought that might be a dangerous answer.**

"Good call," Thalia said. Percy, being very mature, stuck his tongue out at her.

**"You are the Lord of the Dead," I said carefully. "A war would expand your kingdom, right?"**

"Yes, but my kingdom is too crowded," Hades complained.

**"A typical thing for my brothers to say! Do you think I need more subjects? Did you not see the sprawl of the Asphodel Fields?"**

**"Well..."**

**"Have you any idea how much my kingdom has swollen in this past century alone, how many subdivisions I've had to open?"**

Most gods stared at Hades.

"It's true," He said. "It's tough down there."

"Thank gods I got the seas," Poseidon whispered.

**I opened my mouth to respond, but Hades was on a roll now.**

**"More security ghouls," he moaned. "Traffic problems at the judgment pavilion. Double overtime for the staff. I used to be a rich god, Percy Jackson. I control all the precious metals under the earth. But my expenses!"**

**"Charon wants a pay raise," I blurted, just remembering the fact.**

"Not the time for a joke Perce," Conner said. "Even I wouldn't."

"And that's saying a lot," Chris whispered.

**As soon as I said it, I wished I could sew up my mouth.**

"You're going to get in a lot of trouble soon Seaweed Brain," Annabeth whispered to him.

"Already am," Percy whispered.

Annabeth smiled at her boyfriend and whispered back, "Yeah."

**"Don't get me started on Charon!" Hades yelled. "He's been impossible ever since he discovered Italian suits! Problems everywhere, and I've got to handle all of them personally. The commute time alone from the palace to the gates is enough to drive me insane! And the dead just keep arriving. **_**No, **_**godling. I need no help getting subjects! I did not ask for this war."**

"Told you it wasn't me," Hades smirked at everyone.

**"But you took Zeus's master bolt."**

**"Lies!" More rumbling. Hades rose from his throne, towering to the height of a football goalpost. "Your father may fool Zeus, boy, but I am not so stupid. I see his plan."**

"And what would that be," Poseidon glared at Hades.

"To turn Zeus against me while you escape," Hades snapped back.

"Escape what!" Poseidon yelled. "Percy didn't steal the bolt, and you're lucky that I don't come over there and beat you down for threatening my son and stealing his mother!"

"Let's just read," Percy said quietly.

**"His plan?"**

_**"You **_**were the thief on the winter solstice," he said. "Your father thought to keep you his little secret. He directed you into the throne room on Olympus, You took the master bolt **_**and **_**my helmet.**

"WHAT!" Hades shouted. He looked at the smiling Percy and shot a blast of energy at him.

Poseidon, to slow to react, screamed as the blast was about to destroy his son.

Annabeth tightened her grip on both Percy's. Everybody screamed as the blast was about to hit all three of them. Even Clarisse had tears in her eyes. But the blast never came being as Athena blocked the blast.

"Maybe you haven't been paying attention Hades," Athena spat. "But this boy has done nothing wrong, and attempting to hurt him, or my daughter for that matter, wasn't a wise decision."

"So then explain my helmet!" He roared.

"Maybe if we read we could," She snapped back. She turned to Annabeth who was holding Percy tightly. "Let me take the baby Annabeth, that way he could survive the end of the chapter."

Annabeth slowly handed her Baby Percy and then glared at Hades.

"I got you," Athena whispered to Baby Percy who had a few tears streaming down his face.

Percy was whispering into Annabeth's ear because she was crying and shaking like crazy. Nobody ever saw her cry. Not even when Percy dissappeared, but what Hades did scared her to that point. Thalia, Nico, and all teh other demigods glared at Hades.

"How DARE you try to kill Percy! Do you know what he has done for your worthless ass? He saved Olympus meaning he saved your sorry ass from fading! AND you almost killed Annabeth! You're a disgrace!" Thalia, Nico, and the other demigods yelled. Artemis shot Hades with an arrow. Poseidon was just pissed. He was shaking and said in a VERY dangerous voice,

"If you ever do that again, I will personally make sure that you die a slow and painful death over and over again."

"Ass," Hera slapped Hades. "Please continue Nico."

**Had I not sent my Fury to discover you at Yancy Academy, Poseidon might have succeeded in hiding his scheme to start a war. But now you have been forced into the open. You will be exposed as Poseidon's thief, and I will have my helmet back!"**

"You're an idiot," Poseidon glared back.

"Oh, so why do you still have your trident?" Hades asked.

"Because I'm the only one with the child who is out in the open to take the blame!"

**"But ..." Annabeth spoke. I could tell her mind was going a million miles an hour. "Lord Hades, your helmet of darkness is missing, too?"**

**"Do not play innocent with me, girl. You and the satyr have been helping this hero—coming here to threaten me in Poseidon's name, no doubt—to bring me an ultimatum. Does Poseidon think I can be blackmailed into supporting him?"**

"Like I'd want your help after what you've done," Poseidon snapped.

**"No!" I said. "Poseidon didn't—I didn't—"**

**"I have said nothing of the helmet's disappearance," Hades snarled, "because I had no illusions that anyone on Olympus would offer me the slightest justice, the slightest help. I can ill afford for word to get out that my most powerful weapon of fear is missing. So I searched for you myself, and when it was clear you were coming to me to deliver your threat, I did not try to stop you."**

"That's why the Furies were easy," Jason realized.

**"You didn't try to stop us? But—"**

**"Return my helmet now, or I will stop death," Hades threatened. "That is my counterproposal. I will open the earth and have the dead pour back into the world. I will make your lands a nightmare. And you, Percy Jackson—**_**your **_**skeleton will lead my army out of Hades."**

"That will not happen," Zeus shouted. "I will not allow you to do damage like that."

**The skeletal soldiers all took one step forward, making their weapons ready.**

**At that point, I probably should have been terrified. The strange thing was, I felt offended. Nothing gets me angrier than being accused of something I didn't do. I've had a lot of experience with that.**

**"You're as bad as Zeus," I said. "You think I stole from you? That's why you sent the Furies after me?"**

"So the boy wants to play," Hades smirked.

"I'm not bad," Zeus whined.

Jason, Thalia, and Nico all rolled their eyes at their dads. Annabeth just continued to glare at Hades.

**"Of course," Hades said.**

**"And the other monsters?"**

**Hades curled his lip. "I had nothing to do with them. I wanted no quick death for you—I wanted you brought before me alive so you might face every torture in the Fields of Punishment. Why do you think I let you enter my kingdom so easily?"**

_**"Easily?"**_

"Yes, because nearly being tore up by a dog and dragged towards Tartarus was easy," Grover said.

**"Return my property!"**

**"But I don't have your helmet. I came for the master bolt."**

**"Which you already possess!" Hades shouted. "You came here with it, little fool, thinking you could you threaten me!"**

"I'm so lost," Apollo said. "I thought Perce didn't have it."

Athena, who had been taking all the details in to consideration, had come to a conclusion, but hoped that Hades and Zeus would see sense, or the small crying boy in her arms wouldn't be safe from the both of them even with her help.

**"But I didn't!"**

**"Open your pack, then."**

_I knew that was the weight. _Athena thought.

**A horrible feeling struck me. The weight in my backpack, like a bowling ball. It couldn't be...**

Nearly all the mouths were open on Olympus.

**I slung it off my shoulder and unzipped it**_**. **_**Inside was a two-foot-long metal cylinder, spiked on both ends, humming with energy.**

"HE DID TAKE IT!" Zeus roared.

"Knew it," Hades glared at Poseidon.

Both gods glared at Poseidon and then turned to Baby Percy and Athena.

"Hand him over daughter," Zeus yelled. "He took it, I heard it with my own eyes."

"No!" Annabeth had had enough. You toch a single hair on his head and I will kill you myself."

"Shut up silly daughter of Athena." Hades shouted.

Hades stepped towards Athena, but a gold and silver arrow stopped his movements.

"Sorry uncle, but can't let you hurt my little cousin," Apollo held his bow at Athena's side.

"For once I agree with Apollo," Artemis said, her too with a bow in hand. "Male or not, the boy stays alive!" The demigods were crying silently, even Clarisee and the boys. Sally was too stunned to do anything.

"Great, three of my children," Zeus grumbled. Thalia decided she had enough. She got up and walked over to Hades and Zeus. What she did nexy shocked everybody. She smacked them.

"If you DARE hurt Percy in any way, every single demigod here and at Camp Half Blood will fight you. Percy is one of the greatest heroes of all time. You hurt him, you hurt us all." Thalia walked to where Percy was and stood next to him like a bodyguard. One by one, all the demigods got up and stood either around Percy or Athena. Zeus and Hades were shocked that their own children went against them. Hera got up and stood by Athena. The gods that liked Percy stood and protected him. Even Dionysus wanted to protect Percy.

"Percy Jackson is a hero that deserves to live father." Percy was shocked that Dionysus knew his name.

**"Percy," Annabeth said. "How—"**

**"I—I don't know. I don't understand."**

**"You heroes are always the same," Hades said. "Your pride makes you foolish, thinking you could bring such a weapon before me. I did not ask for Zeus's master bolt, but since it is here, you will yield it to me. I am sure it will make an excellent bargaining tool. And now ... my helmet. Where is it?"**

"Well would you look at that," Poseidon eyed his two brothers.

**I was speechless. I had no helm. I had no idea how the master bolt had gotten into my backpack. I wanted to think Hades was pulling some kind of trick. Hades was the bad guy.**

"Am not," Hades argued.

**But suddenly the world turned sideways. I realized I'd been played with. Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades had been set at each other's throats by someone else. The master bolt had been in the backpack, and I'd gotten the backpack from ...**

Every god and demigod god turned to Ares.

"What?" He asked.

"You….you stole the bolt," Athena said.

"No way," Ares argued. "I can't steal it anyways, and if I did, I wouldn't give it away, things awesome."

"Then why is it in the bag?" Zeus glared at his son.

"Let's read and find out," Hestia tried to bring peace. "Finish the chapter and then we'll decide what to do."

**"Lord Hades, wait," I said. "This is all a mistake."**

**"A mistake?" Hades roared.**

**The skeletons aimed their weapons. From high above, there was a fluttering of leathery wings, and the three Furies swooped down to perch on the back of their master's throne. The one with Mrs. Dodds's face grinned at me eagerly and flicked her whip.**

**"There is no mistake," Hades said. "I know why you have come—I know the **_**real **_**reason you brought the bolt. You came to bargain for **_**her**_**."**

Sally's eyes widened.

**Hades loosed a ball of gold fire from his palm. It exploded on the steps in front of me, and there was my mother, frozen in a shower of gold, just as she was at the moment when the Minotaur began to squeeze her to death.**

**I couldn't speak. I reached out to touch her, but the light was as hot as a bonfire.**

**"Yes," Hades said with satisfaction. "I took her. I knew, Percy Jackson, that you would come to bargain with me eventually. Return my helmet, and perhaps I will let her go. She is not dead, you know. Not yet. But if you displease me, that will change."**

"Better not," Poseidon glared at him.

**I thought about the pearls in my pocket. Maybe they could get me out of this. If I could just get my mom free...**

**"Ah, the pearls," Hades said, and my blood froze.**

"But there are only three," Piper said quietly.

**"Yes, my brother and his little tricks. Bring them forth, Percy Jackson."**

**My hand moved against my will and brought out the pearls.**

**"Only three," Hades said. "What a shame. You do realize each only protects a single person. Try to take your mother, then, little godling. And which of your friends will you leave behind to spend eternity with me? Go on. Choose. Or give me the backpack and accept my terms."**

"How could he possibly pick!" Aphrodite shouted. "He loses both ways."

**I looked at Annabeth and Grover. Their faces were grim.**

**"We were tricked," I told them. "Set up."**

**"Yes, but why?" Annabeth asked. "And the voice in the pit—"**

"That still is a mystery," Athena said.

**"I don't know yet," I said. "But I intend to ask."**

**"Decide, boy!" Hades yelled.**

**"Percy." Grover put his hand on my shoulder. "You can't give him the bolt."**

**"I know that."**

Zeus nodded his head in approval.

"You peice of scum." Hera said. Everybody went back to sit down. But some demigods-Thalia, Nico- sat next to Annabeth and Percy. Apollo and Artemis were next to Athena, their bows ready.

**"Leave me here," he said. "Use the third pearl on your mom."**

"NO!" Most shouted.

**"No!"**

**"I'm a satyr," Grover said. "We don't have souls like humans do. He can torture me until I die, but he won't get me forever. I'll just be reincarnated as a flower or something. It's the best way."**

Everyone smiled at Grover.

"You're such a cutie," Aphrodite beamed at him.

**"No." Annabeth drew her bronze knife. "You two go on. Grover, you have to protect Percy. You have to get your searcher's license and start your quest for Pan. Get his mom out of here. I'll cover you. I plan to go down fighting."**

"Typical Annabeth," Thalia smiled at her friend.

"I would hope that that isn't the case," Athena said to her daughter.

"I'm fine mom."

**"No way," Grover said. "I'm staying behind."**

**"Think again, goat boy," Annabeth said.**

"Even in a crisis, you bring the name up," Grover said sadly.

**"Stop it, both of you!" I felt like my heart was being ripped in two. They had both been with me through so much. I remembered Grover dive-bombing Medusa in the statue garden, and Annabeth saving us from Cerberus; we'd survived Hephaestus's Waterland ride, the St. Louis Arch, the Lotus Casino. I had spent thousands of miles worried that I'd be betrayed by a friend, but these friends would never do that.**

Annabeth and Grover smiled brightly.

"Percy's is lucky to have both of you," Poseidon smiled at them. Annabeth leaned her head on Percy's shoulder.

**They had done nothing but save me, over and over, and now they wanted to sacrifice their lives for my mom.**

Sally smiled at Annabeth and Grover, but shook her head. "I hope you kids don't do it."

**"I know what to do," I said. "Take these."**

**I handed them each a pearl.**

**Annabeth said, "But, Percy ..."**

**I turned and faced my mother. I desperately wanted to sacrifice myself and use the last pearl on her, but I knew what she would say. She would never allow it. I had to get the bolt back to Olympus and tell Zeus the truth. I had to stop the war. She would never forgive me if I saved her instead. **

Sally cried silently and was comforted by Percy who had silently walked over and pulled her into a hug,

**I thought about the prophecy made at Half-Blood Hill, what seemed like a million years ago. **_**You will fail to save what matters most in the end.**_

"It was talking about his mom," Piper said sadly.

Poseidon was at a loss for words, and stared at his former lover cry.

"You should be ashamed," Hera spat at Hades.

**"I'm sorry," I told her. "I'll be back. I'll find a way."**

Sally smiled.

"He persistent," Leo smiled sadly at Percy's determination.

"He's Percy," Nico smiled. Percy smiled at how his friends would protect him through everything.

**The smug look on Hades's face faded. He said, "Godling ... ?"**

**"I'll find your helmet, Uncle," I told him. "I'll return it. Remember about Charon's pay raise."**

"Only Percy," Travis whispered.

**"Do not defy me—"**

**"And it wouldn't hurt to play with Cerberus once in a while. He likes red rubber balls."**

"Nice," Conner laughed quietly.

**"Percy Jackson, you will not—"**

**I shouted, "Now, guys!"**

**We smashed the pearls at our feet. For a scary moment, nothing happened.**

**Hades yelled, "Destroy them!"**

**The army of skeletons rushed forward, swords out, guns clicking to full automatic. The Furies lunged, their whips bursting into flame.**

**Just as the skeletons opened fire, the pearl fragments at my feet exploded with a burst of green light and a gust of fresh sea wind. I was encased in a milky white sphere, which was starting to float off the ground.**

_At least they're saved. _Poseidon thought.

**Annabeth and Grover were right behind me. Spears and bullets sparked harmlessly off the pearl bubbles as we floated up. Hades yelled with such rage, the entire fortress shook and I knew it was not going to be a peaceful night in L.A.**

**"Look up.'" Grover yelled. "We're going to crash!"**

**Sure enough, we were racing right toward the stalactites, which I figured would pop our bubbles and skewer us.**

**"How do you control these things?" Annabeth shouted.**

**"I don't think you do!" I shouted back.**

**We screamed as the bubbles slammed into the ceiling and ... Darkness.**

**Were we dead?**

"Hope not," Rachel said.

**No, I could still feel the racing sensation. We were going up, right through solid rock as easily as an air bubble in water. That was the power of the pearls, I realized—**_**What belongs to the sea will always return to the sea.**_

"They're in the ocean," Athena said.

**For a few moments, I couldn't see anything outside the smooth walls of my sphere, then my pearl broke through on the ocean floor. The two other milky spheres, Annabeth and Grover, kept pace with me as we soared upward through the water. And—**_**ker-blam!**_

**We exploded on the surface, in the middle of the Santa Monica Bay, knocking a surfer off his board with an indignant, "Dude!"**

"Dude!" The Stolls cheered.

**I grabbed Grover and hauled him over to a life buoy. I caught Annabeth and dragged her over too. A curious shark was circling us, a great white about eleven feet long.**

**I said, "Beat it."**

**The shark turned and raced away.**

"That wasn't nice," Will whispered.

"He was going to eat us," Grover complained.

"I wouldn't have let him." Percy told his friend.

**The surfer screamed something about bad mushrooms and paddled away from us as fast as he could.**

**Somehow, I knew what time it was: early morning, June 21, the day of the summer solstice.**

**In the distance, Los Angeles was on fire, plumes of smoke rising from neighborhoods all over the city. There had been an earthquake, all right, and it was Hades's fault. He was probably sending an army of the dead after me right now.**

"Well I do want my helm back," He grumbled.

**But at the moment, the Underworld wasn't my biggest problem.**

**I had to get to shore. I had to get Zeus's thunderbolt back to Olympus. Most of all, I had to have a serious conversation with the god who'd tricked me.**

"You better have a good explanation Ares," Zeus threatened.

Ares gulped. "Just read."

"I will," Artemis said.

* * *

Hey guys! So I started this at three and it is now 6:12. It was a hard chapter to write since I almost had to kill Percy, but I finished it. ENJOY! And don't forget to review.


	32. I swear

Hey guys! I really hope you guys enjoyed the last chapter. Thanx for all of those who reviewed. This chapter will feature a very angry Poseidon, Annabeth, Thalia, Athena and the other demigods. Also, Aphrodite will have a little talk with Thalia. There may be Thalico. If you like Thaluke, I don't care. NOW ON WITH THE STORY MY MINIONS!

* * *

"I think we should take a break from reading for a little bit." Chiron said. Nobody disagreed. Hades and Zeus glared at everybody. Percy was still comforting Annabeth. Athena was holding a sleeping Percy. Thalia was glaring at her father. Nico had an aura of death. The minis went to bed because it seven and they were and Connor were quiet for once. Clarisse and Chris were no where to be seen. Jason, Piper, and Leo were quiet. Hazel and Frank kept looking at Zeus and Hades. Poseidon was still fuming. Aphrodite was walking towards Thalia. Thalia got up and walked with Aphrodite. Artemis and Apollo were guarding Athena.

"Thalia, I am the goddess of love. And I have a feeling that you are in love with somebody." Thalia looked scared.

"I-I don't want to be. But I c-can't help it. I-I don't know what to do." Thalia said while sobbing.

"Follow your heart." Thalia nodded, took a deep breath and went Artemis.

"Lady Artemis, I quit the hunt." Artemis knew this was coming, she nodded but looked sad.

"That is fine Thalia. Though it makes me sad to see you go, I understand why.'' Thalia smiled and went to find a certain Death Breath. Percy and Annabeth were the only ones in the throne room.

"P-Percy, I don't want t-to lose y-you." Annabeth whispered.

"You won't. I swear on the river styx." Thunder boomed in the distance. Zeus was sulking since everybody kept glaring at him.

"I still believe that _boy_ stloe my bolt." he grumbled. Thalia was looking for Nico when she found him walking alone.

"Nico, I need to talk to-" before Thalia could continue, Nico kissed her. At first, she was shocked but then she kissed himback. They walked back to the throne room hand in hand. Annabeth was a bit better now.

"I will read." Hera said.


	33. Percy is crazy and stupid

Hey guys! Love all of your reviews!

DON"T FORGET TO REVIEW!

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"**I Battle my Jerk Relative," **Hera read.

"Yeah, it's about time," Ares laughed. "Kids going to fight me."

"You just called yourself a jerk." Annabeth pointed out. Ares glared at her, but Percy glared at him even harder.

**A Coast Guard boat picked us up, but they were too busy to keep us for long, or to wonder how three kids in street clothes had gotten out into the middle of the bay. There was a disaster to mop up. Their radios were jammed with distress calls.**

**They dropped us off at the Santa Monica Pier with towels around our shoulders and water bottles that said I'M A JUNIOR COAST GUARD! and sped off to save more people.**

**Our clothes were sopping wet, even mine. When the Coast Guard boat had appeared, I'd silently prayed they wouldn't pick me out of the water and find me perfectly dry, which might've raised some eyebrows. **

"He can make himself wet or dry?" Jason asked.

"Yeah," Thalia nodded. "I guess in cases like that."

**So I'd willed myself to get soaked. Sure enough, my usual waterproof magic had abandoned me. I was also barefoot, because I'd given my shoes to Grover. Better the Coast Guard wonder why one of us was barefoot than wonder why one of us had hooves.**

**After reaching dry land, we stumbled down the beach, watching the city burn against a beautiful sunrise. I felt as if I'd just come back from the dead—which I had. My back pack was heavy with Zeus's master bolt. My heart was even heavier from seeing my mother.**

Sally smiled a little; she still had Annabeth close to her.

**"I don't believe it," Annabeth said. "We went all that way—"**

**"It was a trick," I said. "A strategy worthy of Athena."**

"I hope that's not an insult," Athena picked up Baby Percy and spun to face him eye to eye. "Were you being mean?"

"No," He whispered in a tiny voice. "No meanie."

"Alright then," Athena smiled.

**"Hey," she warned.**

**"You get it, don't you?"**

"I get it, but I still don't see how he did it," Demeter pointed at Ares.

**She dropped her eyes, her anger fading. "Yeah. I get it."**

**"Well, I don't!" Grover complained. "Would some body—"**

**"Percy ..." Annabeth said. "I'm sorry about your mother. I'm so sorry..."**

Annabeth gave Sally another tight hug. Percy hugged both of them even tighter.

**I pretended not to hear her. If I talked about my mother, I was going to start crying like a little kid.**

"It's okay to cry young hero," Hestia said. "It shows you love your mother."

**"The prophecy was right," I said. "You shall go west and face the god who has turned.' But it wasn't Hades. Hades didn't want war among the Big Three. Someone else pulled off the theft. Someone stole Zeus's master bolt, and Hades's helm, and framed me because I'm Poseidon's kid. Poseidon will get blamed by both sides. By sundown today, there will be a three-way war. And I'll have caused it."**

"That's genius," Athena said. "That plan is something I would create. How did Ares do it?"

"I'm smart," Ares whined.

"I'm smart compared to you," Apollo laughed. "You my friend are an idiot."

**Grover shook his head, mystified. "But who would be that sneaky? Who would want war that bad?"**

"Now it makes sense," Hera said. "If someone would gain out of war, it would be Ares."

**I stopped in my tracks, looking down the beach. "Gee, let me think."**

**There he was, waiting for us, in his black leather duster and his sunglasses, an aluminum baseball bat propped on his shoulder. His motorcycle rumbled beside him, its head light turning the sand red.**

**"Hey, kid," Ares said, seeming genuinely pleased to see me. "You were supposed to die."**

"Which is something you're about to endure," Poseidon threatened.

"I agree," Hades said. "You framed all three of us for a stupid war!"

"But….I didn't do it yet," Ares looked truly scared at the sight of Poseidon and Hades.

"You will be punished," Zeus shouted.

"WAIT," Annabeth yelled before anyone attacked. All eyes turned to her.

"Annabeth's crazy," Travis whispered to Conner.

"I know," He whispered back. "Get this on camera."

"Already rolling."

"You can't do anything yet," She explained. "Finish the book and then decide, but not now."

"I agree with blondie," Ares said.

"Yeah, so you don't get your ass handed to you," Nico whispered.

"Just read," Zeus said.

**"You tricked me," I said. **_**"You **_**stole the helm and the master bolt."**

**Ares grinned. "Well, now, I didn't steal them personally. Gods taking each other's symbols of power—that's a big no-no. But you're not the only hero in the world who can run errands."**

"So you admit it," Hades glared. "We found the god that turned, but the thief is still up in the air."

"Yes, but it isn't Percy," Poseidon noted.

**"Who did you use? Clarisse? She was there at the winter solstice."**

"I didn't steal it!" Clarisse shouted. "How could he accuse me?"

"Gee, I wonder," Will said. "Maybe when you accused him of the hellhound incident."

"I was pissed," Clarisse shouted.

"You're an idiot," Thalia shouted back. "If I was Percy then, it would seem obvious. Look at the facts Clarisse. You were there, you hate Percy, and lastly, he's your father!"

The gods stared down at Clarisse who gulped.

"It wasn't her," Percy said. "I won't tell you who it is but it's not her."

**The idea seemed to amuse him. "Doesn't matter. The point is, kid, you're impeding the war effort. See, you've got to die in the Underworld. Then Old Seaweed will be mad at Hades for killing you. Corpse Breath will have Zeus's master bolt, so Zeus'll be mad at **_**him. **_**And Hades is still looking for this …"**

"Athena comes up with the best nicknames." Hermes said.

**From his pocket he took out a ski cap—the kind bank robbers wear—and placed it between the handlebars of his bike. Immediately, the cap transformed into an elaborate bronze war helmet.**

**"The helm of darkness," Grover gasped.**

"I'm so tempted to kill him," Hades grumbled.

"Me too," Nico glared at Ares. "You framed my dad!"

**"Exactly," Ares said. "Now where was I? Oh yeah, Hades will be mad at both Zeus and Poseidon, because he doesn't know who took this. Pretty soon, we got a nice little three-way slugfest going."**

"You're pathetic," Aphrodite looked at him. "What I saw in you is truly a mystery."

**"But they're your family!" Annabeth protested.**

"Yes, I agree with her," Hera said. "Fighting and bickering I could tolerate, but a war amongst the big three would be horrible! Especially if they're fighting each other."

"It would be cool," Ares whispered. Ares was shocked when Annabeth slapped him.

"You will pay for that mortal."

"Touch her and I'll just whip your sorry ass again." Percy said, protecting his girlfriend.

**Ares shrugged. "Best kind of war. Always the bloodiest. Nothing like watching your relatives fight, I always say."**

"You're nothing like your dad," Piper whispered to Clarisse.

"Thanks gods," Clarisse said. "I love fighting, but with honor, not being deceitful."

**"You gave me the backpack in Denver," I said. "The master bolt was in there the whole time."**

"I knew that was the gift you shouldn't trust," Athena said.

**"Yes and no," Ares said. "It's probably too complicated for your little mortal brain to follow, but the backpack is the master bolt's sheath, just morphed a bit. The bolt is connected to it, sort of like that sword you got, kid. It always returns to your pocket, right?"**

**I wasn't sure how Ares knew about that, but I guess a god of war had to make it his business to know about weapons.**

"Yeah," Ares said.

**"Anyway," Ares continued, "I tinkered with the magic a bit, so the bolt would only return to the sheath once you reached the Underworld. You get close to Hades... Bingo, you got mail. If you died along the way—no loss. I still had the weapon."**

**"But why not just keep the master bolt for yourself?" I said. "Why send it to Hades?"**

"He's right," Hermes said. "You of all people love a weapon that dangerous."

**Ares got a twitch in his jaw. For a moment, it was almost as if he were listening to another voice, deep inside his head. "Why didn't I ... yeah ... with that kind of fire power ..."**

"Someone's influencing you," Athena realized. She turned to her daughter. "That's why you didn't want them to fight. It isn't Ares."

"You'll see."

**He held the trance for one second ... two seconds...**

**I exchanged nervous looks with Annabeth.**

**Ares's face cleared. "I didn't want the trouble. Better to have you caught redhanded, holding the thing."**

**"You're lying," I said. "Sending the bolt to the Underworld wasn't your idea, was it?"**

**"Of course it was!" Smoke drifted up from his sun glasses, as if they were about to catch fire.**

"Percy's right," Poseidon glared.

**"You didn't order the theft," I guessed. "Someone else sent a hero to steal the two items. Then, when Zeus sent you to hunt him down, you caught the thief. But you didn't turn him over to Zeus. Something convinced you to let him go. You kept the items until another hero could come along and complete the delivery. That thing in the pit is ordering you around."**

**"I am the god of war! I take orders from no one! I don't have dreams!"**

"Who said anything about dreams?" Athena asked.

**I hesitated. "Who said anything about dreams?"**

The Stolls and Leo cracked.

"You think like Percy."

**Ares looked agitated, but he tried to cover it with a smirk.**

**"Let's get back to the problem at hand, kid. You're alive. I can't have you taking that bolt to Olympus. You just might get those hardheaded idiots to listen to you. So I've got to kill you. Nothing personal."**

"So we're idiots now," Athena turned to Ares, along with all the other gods.

"I hate this chapter," Ares mumbled.

**He snapped his fingers. The sand exploded at his feet and out charged a wild boar, even larger and uglier than the one whose head hung above the door of cabin seven at Camp Half-Blood. The beast pawed the sand, glaring at me with beady eyes as it lowered its razor-sharp tusks and waited for the command to kill.**

**I stepped into the surf. "Fight me yourself, Ares."**

"That's the only way right?" Jason asked his sister. "A hero has to challenge a god."

"Yeah," Thalia said.

"You're nuts Percy," Leo threw in. "It's going to get crazy!"

**He laughed, but I heard a little edge to his laughter ... an uneasiness. **

"Scared?" Apollo laughed at Ares.

"NO!"

**"You've only got one talent, kid, running away. You ran from the Chimera. You ran from the Under world. You don't have what it takes."**

"Says the one taking orders from someone," Poseidon glared. "My son may not be a god, but he isn't a coward or a runner. He's got the bolt, he returned from the underworld, and he's fought and beaten some of the oldest monsters. So don't talk shit out of the deceitful mouth!"

"Nice speech," Travis whistled.

**"Scared?"**

**"In your adolescent dreams." But his sunglasses were starting to melt from the heat of his eyes. "No direct involvement. Sorry, kid. You're not at my level."**

**Annabeth said, "Percy, run!"**

**The giant boar charged.**

**But I was done running from monsters. Or Hades, or Ares, or anybody.**

"Uh oh, you pissed off Percy," Nico laughed. "You're in for it dude." Piper, Leo, and Jason looked confused.

"Rule number one, never piss of Percy or Annabeth." Clarisse said, smiling thinking about what was about to happen.

**As the boar rushed me, I uncapped my pen and side stepped. Riptide appeared in my hands. I slashed upward. The boar's severed right tusk fell at my feet, while the disoriented animal charged into the sea.**

**I shouted, "Wave!"**

**Immediately, a wave surged up from nowhere and engulfed the boar, wrapping around it like a blanket. The beast squealed once in terror. Then it was gone, swallowed by the sea.**

"AWESOME," Was shouted from many in the throne room.

"You're getting quite powerful Perseus," Athena looked down at him.

"Yup," Percy laughed.

Zeus eyed the boy from far. _He is a danger._

**I turned back to Ares. "Are you going to fight me now?" I asked. "Or are you going to hide behind another pet?"**

**Ares's face was purple with rage. "Watch it, kid. I could turn you into—"**

**"A cockroach," I said. "Or a tapeworm. Yeah, I'm sure. That'd save you from getting your godly hide whipped, wouldn't it?"**

"Percy's getting good," Thalia laughed.

"I know, it's freaking crazy," Nico joined in.

"Dangerous mouth your son has," Hera whispered to Poseidon.

"No," Poseidon smiled. "He's just tired of being restrained and picked on." Percy laughed evily remebering what happened next.

**Flames danced along the top of his glasses. "Oh, man, you are really asking to be smashed into a grease spot."**

**"If I lose, turn me into anything you want. Take the bolt. If I win, the helm and the bolt are mine and **_**you **_**have to go away."**

_One day that mouth will get you into a lot of trouble. _Annabeth smiled.

**Ares sneered.**

**He swung the baseball bat off his shoulder. "How would you like to get smashed: classic or modern?"**

**I showed him my sword.**

**"That's cool, dead boy," he said. "Classic it is." The baseball bat changed into a huge, two-handed sword. The hilt was a large silver skull with a ruby in its mouth.**

"This is getting intense," Leo whispered.

_The ocean Percy. _Poseidon thought. _It's right there._

**"Percy," Annabeth said. "Don't do this. He's a god."**

"He isn't going to listen right," Sally whispered.

"He's going to be fine," Annabeth whispered back. "Trust me."

**"He's a coward," I told her.**

Ares though about commenting but said nothing.

**She swallowed. "Wear this, at least. For luck."**

**She took off her necklace, with her five years' worth of camp beads and the ring from her father, and tied it around my neck.**

Aphrodite beamed at Annabeth. "That's adorable."

"Thanks," Annabeth blushed.

Athena eyed her daughter and then Percy. _I'm trusting you, don't hurt her._

_I would never hurt her. _Percy thought. Athena nodded at Percy.

**"Reconciliation," she said. "Athena and Poseidon together."**

"I like that sentence," Aphrodite smiled at the two gods.

Athena and Poseidon eyed each other but said nothing.

**My face felt a little warm, but I managed a smile. "Thanks."**

"He's blushing," Aphrodite gushed.

**"And take this," Grover said. He handed me a flattened tin can that he'd probably been saving in his pocket for a thousand miles. "The satyrs stand behind you."**

**"Grover ... I don't know what to say."**

"Neither do we," The Stolls laughed.

**He patted me on the shoulder. I stuffed the tin can in my back pocket.**

**"You all done saying good-bye?" Ares came toward me, his black leather duster trailing behind him, his sword glinting like fire in the sunrise. "I've been fighting for eternity, kid. My strength is unlimited and I cannot die. What have you got?"**

"A true heart," Hestia answered.

**A smaller ego, I thought, but I said nothing. I kept my feet in the surf, backing into the water up to my ankles. I thought back to what Annabeth had said at the Denver diner, so long ago: **_**Ares has strength. That's all he has. Even strength has to how to wisdom sometimes.**_

"So he does listen to me," Annabeth whispered and quietly laughed.

"of course I do."

**He cleaved downward at my head, but I wasn't there.**

**My body thought for me. The water seemed to push me into the air and I catapulted over him, slashing as I came down. But Ares was just as quick. He twisted, and the strike that should've caught him directly in the spine was deflected off the end of his sword hilt.**

**He grinned. "Not bad, not bad."**

"Not bad?" Leo awed. "That was crazy."

**He slashed again and I was forced to jump onto dry land.**

"Not good," Will said.

**I tried to sidestep, to get back to the water, but Ares seemed to know what I wanted.**

"Ha, I got him now," Ares laughed.

**He outmaneuvered me, pressing so hard I had to put all my concentration on not getting sliced into pieces. I kept backing away from the surf. I couldn't find any openings to attack. His sword had a reach several feet longer than Anaklusmos.**

_**Get in close, **_**Luke had told me once, back in our sword class. **_**When you've got the shorter blade, get in close.**_

"At least he taught him something," Thalia rolled her eyes.

**I stepped inside with a thrust, but Ares was waiting for that.**

"God of War kid," Ares smiled. "I know all the moves."

**He knocked my blade out of my hands and kicked me in the chest. I went airborne—twenty, maybe thirty feet. I would've broken my back if I hadn't crashed into the soft sand of a dune.**

**"Percy!" Annabeth yelled. "Cops!"**

"What?" Most asked.

**I was seeing double. My chest felt like it had just been hit with a battering ram, but I managed to get to my feet.**

Sally cringed at the thought of Percy being hurt.

**I couldn't look away from Ares for fear he'd slice me in half, but out of the corner of my eye I saw red lights flashing on the shoreline boulevard. Car doors were slamming.**

**"There, officer!" somebody yelled. "See?"**

**A gruff cop voice: "Looks like that kid on TV ... what the heck ..."**

"Really!" Nico said. "I swear, everywhere he goes, someone knows. It's ridiculous."

**"That guy's armed," another cop said. "Call for backup."**

**I rolled to one side as Ares's blade slashed the sand.**

**I ran for my sword, scooped it up, and launched a swipe at Ares's face, only to find my blade deflected again.**

Poseidon glared at a smirking Ares.

**Ares seemed to know exactly what I was going to do the moment before I did it.**

**I stepped back toward the surf, forcing him to follow.**

**"Admit it, kid," Ares said. "You got no hope. I'm just toying with you."**

**My senses were working overtime. I now understood what Annabeth had said about ADHD keeping you alive in battle. I was wide awake, noticing every little detail.**

"Got to love it," Leo said.

**I could see where Ares was tensing. I could tell which way he would strike. At the same time, I was aware of Annabeth and Grover, thirty feet to my left. I saw a second cop car pulling up, siren wailing. Spectators, people who had been wandering the streets because of the earthquake, were starting to gather. Among the crowd, I thought I saw a few who were walking with the strange, trotting gait of disguised satyrs. There were shimmering forms of spirits, too, as if the dead had risen from Hades to watch the battle. I heard the flap of leathery wings circling somewhere above.**

"Big crowd," Apollo whistled.

**More sirens.**

**I stepped farther into the water, but Ares was fast. The tip of his blade ripped my sleeve and grazed my forearm.**

**A police voice on a megaphone said, "Drop the guns.' Set them on the ground. Now!"**

"Guns? I thought they were using swords," Jason wondered.

"Probably the mist," Piper said.

**Guns?**

**I looked at Ares's weapon, and it seemed to be flickering; sometimes it looked like a shotgun, sometimes a two-handed sword. I didn't know what the humans were seeing in my hands, but I was pretty sure it wouldn't make them like me.**

"They basically hate him right now," Katie said. "Which is really messed up."

"Like a twelve year old could be that dangerous," Travis laughed.

"But Percy is." Connor laughed.

**Ares turned to glare at our spectators, which gave me a moment to breathe. There were five police cars now, and a line of officers crouching behind them, pistols trained on us.**

**"This is a private matter!" Ares bellowed. "Be gone.'"**

**He swept his hand, and a wall of red flame rolled across the patrol cars. The police barely had time to dive for cover before their vehicles exploded. The crowd behind them scattered, screaming.**

"Smart," Athena glared. "You could have hurt them."

"Who cares," Ares laughed. He was loving the fight.

**Ares roared with laughter. "Now, little hero. Let's add you to the barbecue."**

**He slashed. I deflected his blade. I got close enough to strike, tried to fake him out with a feint, but my blow was knocked aside. The waves were hitting me in the back now. Ares was up to his thighs, wading in after me.**

**I felt the rhythm of the sea, the waves growing larger as the tide rolled in, and suddenly I had an idea. **_**Little waves, **_**I thought. And the water behind me seemed to recede. I was holding back the tide by force of will, but tension was building, like carbonation behind a cork.**

"What's he planning?" Jason asked.

"Not telling," Grover laughed. "But it was awesome."

**Ares came toward, grinning confidently. I lowered my blade, as if I were too exhausted to go on. **_**Wait for it, **_**I told the sea. The pressure now was almost lifting me off my feet. Ares raised his sword. I released the tide and jumped, rocketing straight over Ares on a wave.**

Poseidon smiled.

**A six-foot wall of water smashed him full in the face, leaving him cursing and sputtering with a mouth full of sea weed.**

"Gross," Thalia laughed.

**I landed behind him with a splash and feinted toward his head, as I'd done before. He turned in time to raise his sword, but this time he was disoriented, he didn't anticipate the trick. I changed direction, lunged to the side, and stabbed Riptide straight down into the water, sending the point through the god's heel.**

"WHAT!" Ares shouted.

"The boys powerful," Zeus said. "To even battle, let alone hurt a god, when he just stared training is very rare."

"Percy's rare," Thalia said.

**The roar that followed made Hades's earthquake look like a minor event. The very sea was blasted back from Ares, leaving a wet circle of sand fifty feet wide.**

**Ichor, the golden blood of the gods, flowed from a gash in the war god's boot. The expression on his face was beyond hatred. It was pain, shock, complete disbelief that he'd been wounded.**

"I'll kill him for this," Ares shouted. Annabeth glared at him and Ares shrank back into his seat.

**He limped toward me, muttering ancient Greek curses.**

**Something stopped him.**

**It was as if a cloud covered the sun, but worse. Light faded. Sound and color drained away. A cold, heavy presence passed over the beach, slowing time, dropping the temperature to freezing, and making me feel like life was hopeless, fighting was useless.**

"It's him," Poseidon whispered.

**The darkness lifted.**

**Ares looked stunned.**

**Police cars were burning behind us. The crowd of spectators had fled. Annabeth and Grover stood on the beach, in shock, watching the water flood back around Ares's feet, his glowing golden ichor dissipating in the tide.**

**Ares lowered his sword.**

"No way!" Ares shouted. "I should kill him!"

**"You have made an enemy, godling," he told me. "You have sealed your fate. Every time you raise your blade in battle, every time you hope for success, you will feel my curse. Beware, Perseus Jackson. Beware."**

"Well maybe I should curse all of your children," Poseidon shouted. "Just because you can't deal with defeat, you have to curse my son! "You're a coward Ares, Percy's right."

"DON'T CALL ME A COWARD," Ares shouted.

He charged Poseidon, but Poseidon charged back.

The gods watched as the two met and an explosion and bright light filled the room.

The demigods were nearly blown off the sofa while the gods held tight onto their thrones. When the light died, Poseidon stood in the middle with a passed out Ares on the floor, lying still.

"Leave him be," Poseidon spat. "Traitor deserves it."

Poseidon sat back on his throne and waved his hand for Hera to continue.

**His body began to glow.**

**''Percy!" Annabeth shouted. "Don't watch!"**

**I turned away as the god Ares revealed his true immortal form. I somehow knew that if I looked, I would disintegrate into ashes.**

"Thank gods that didn't happen to me," Jason said quietly.

**The light died.**

**I looked back. Ares was gone. The tide rolled out to reveal Hades's bronze helm of darkness. I picked it up and walked toward my friends.**

"Good, now give it to me," Hades said.

"You have his mother, why would he give it to you," Demeter shot back.

**But before I got there, I heard the flapping of leathery wings. Three evil-looking grandmothers with lace hats and fiery whips drifted down from the sky and landed in front of me.**

**The middle Fury, the one who had been Mrs. Dodds, stepped forward. Her fangs were bared, but for once she didn't look threatening. She looked more disappointed, as if she'd been planning to have me for supper, but had decided I might give her indigestion.**

"Sounds like he's been in that situation before," Conner laughed.

**"We saw the whole thing," she hissed. "So ... it truly was not you?"**

**I tossed her the helmet, which she caught in surprise.**

**"Return that to Lord Hades," I said. "Tell him the truth. Tell him to call off the war."**

"But…but he has Sally," Poseidon struggled.

"Yes, and now I have my helm back," Hades smiled. He turned to and looked at Percy who Annabeth perched on his lap playing with her hair. "You've done well nephew."

"Yet you still have his mother," Demeter glared.

**She hesitated, then ran a forked tongue over her green, leathery lips. "Live well, Percy Jackson. Become a true hero. Because if you do not, if you ever come into my clutches again …"**

"Out of all the monsters, I doubt she would be the worst," Nico snorted.

**She cackled, savoring the idea. Then she and her sisters rose on their bats' wings, fluttered into the smoke-filled sky, and disappeared.**

**I joined Grover and Annabeth, who were staring at me in amazement.**

"It was amazing," Annabeth admitted. "To take on a god….and win. It's something else."

"Yeah, and it was really cool," Grover smiled. "I like the stabbing part."

**"Percy ..." Grover said. "That was so incredibly ..."**

**"Terrifying," said Annabeth.**

**"Cool!" Grover corrected.**

The three shared a laugh.

**I didn't feel terrified. I certainly didn't feel cool. I was tired and sore and completely drained of energy.**

"Well he just took on a god and won," Piper said with awe in her voice.

_So I have to take on a god to win her over. _Jason thought. _Damn you Percy, you're like the ultimate cool guy!_

_Wow, Percy's the ultimate cool guy! _Leo thought.

**"Did you guys feel that... whatever it was?" I asked.**

**They both nodded uneasily.**

**"Must've been the Furies overhead," Grover said.**

"I wish," Grover said.

**But I wasn't so sure. Something had stopped Ares from killing me, and whatever could do that was a lot stronger than the Furies.**

"He's lucky," Ares said.

**I looked at Annabeth, and an understanding passed between us. I knew now what was in that pit, what had spoken from the entrance of Tartarus.**

"See, even our children know," Poseidon said.

**I reclaimed my backpack from Grover and looked inside. The master bolt was still there. Such a small thing to almost cause World War III.**

"It isn't small," Zeus said. "Once I get it back it'll grow under my control."

**"We have to get back to New York," I said. "By tonight."**

**"That's impossible," Annabeth said, "unless we—"**

**"Fly," I agreed.**

"Does Percy want to die?" Thalia asked a little shocked.

"No," Athena answered. She eyed Zeus. "He has the bolt. And unless Zeus wants to fish it out in the ruble or destroy it, he won't harm the plane."

"Fine," Zeus grumbled.

**She stared at me. "Fly, like, in an airplane, which you were warned never to do lest Zeus strike you out of the sky, **_**and **_**carrying a weapon that has more destructive power than a nuclear bomb?"**

"When you put it that way…" Conner said.

**"Yeah," I said. "Pretty much exactly like that. Come on."**

"So Percy's crazy," Conner finished.

"He just took on a god," Will pointed out. "I think he could handle a flight."

"Who wants to read?" Hera asked.

"I will," Apollo offered. "Show you my skills…"


	34. I settle my tab

** "I Settle My Tab," **Apollo read.

"But he's only 12." Hermes said

"Not that kind of tab." Athena sighed.

**It's funny how humans can wrap their mind around things and fit them into their version of reality. Chiron had told me that long ago. As usual, I didn't appreciate his wisdom until much later.**

Chiron smiled. "At least he listens."

**According to the L.A. news, the explosion at the Santa Monica beach had been caused when a crazy kidnapper fired a shotgun at a police car. He accidentally hit a gas main that had ruptured during the earthquake.**

"Believable, if there was a shotgun," Rachel said.

**This crazy kidnapper (a.k.a. Ares) was the same man who had abducted me and two other adolescents in New York and brought us across country on a ten-day odyssey of terror.**

"I'm not a kidnapper," Ares growled.

"Maybe not, but you didn't deny the crazy part," Aphrodite laughed.

**Poor little Percy Jackson wasn't an international criminal after all.**

"Percy makes himself sound like a teddy bear," Travis laughed.

"He's Annabeth's Teddy Bear." Connor whispered. Percy and Annabeth started to blush.

**He'd caused a commotion on that Greyhound bus in New Jersey trying to get away from his captor (and afterward, witnesses would even swear they had seen the leather-clad man on the bus—"Why didn't I remember him before?"). The crazy man had caused the explosion in the St. Louis Arch. After all, no kid could've done that. A concerned waitress in Denver had seen the man threatening his abductees outside her diner, gotten a friend to take a photo, and notified the police. Finally, brave Percy Jackson (I was beginning to like this kid)**

"Why wouldn't he, it's him," Grover laughed. Percy blushed again and Annabeth laughed.

**had stolen a gun from his captor in Los Angeles and battled him shotgun-to-rifle on the beach. Police had arrived just in time. But in the spectacular explosion, five police cars had been destroyed and the captor had fled. No fatalities had occurred. Percy Jackson and his two friends were safely in police custody.**

"Yes, because a twelve year old would have a shoot off in the middle of Los Angeles," Thalia rolled her eyes. "Mortals are stupid."

"Right here Thals, right here," Rachel said.

"But you're our stupid mortal," Thalia smiled sweetly.

**The reporters fed us this whole story. We just nodded and acted tearful and exhausted (which wasn't hard), and played victimized kids for the cameras.**

"You cried?" Katie asked Annabeth with a smile.

"No," Annabeth laughed. "Only Percy cried, and maybe a little from Grover."

"I did not cry!" Percy and Grover shouted.

**"All I want," I said, choking back my tears, "is to see my loving stepfather again. Every time I saw him on TV, calling me a delinquent punk, I knew ... somehow ... we would be okay. And I know he'll want to reward each and every person in this beautiful city of Los Angeles with a free major appliance from his store.**

"That's ridiculously funny," Travis laughed. "We should do that."

**Here's the phone number." The police and reporters were so moved that they passed around the hat and raised money for three tickets on the next plane to New York.**

"I was wondering how you were going to pay," Piper said. "What would happen if you didn't raise enough?"

"Probably use my hat to steal some," Annabeth explained.

"Annabeth," Athena said shocked. Annabeth just shrugged.

**I knew there was no choice but to fly. I hoped Zeus would cut me some slack, considering the circumstances. But it was still hard to force myself on board the flight.**

"Well seeing as your flying with my weapon, I'll let it go," Zeus said. "But any other time, that planes going down."

"Gee, that's the nicest thing you've said," Hera rolled her eyes.

**Takeoff was a nightmare. Every spot of turbulence was scarier than a Greek monster.**

**I didn't unclench my hands from the armrests until we touched down safely at La Guardia. The local press was waiting for us outside security, but we managed to evade them thanks to Annabeth, who lured them away in her invisible Yankees cap, shouting, "They're over by the frozen yogurt! Come on!" then rejoined us at baggage claim.**

"You should start a riot with that hat," Leo suggested. "Make one comment here, another there, and by the end of it, people are destroying the place."

**We split up at the taxi stand. I told Annabeth and Grover to get back to Half-Blood Hill and let Chiron know what had happened. They protested, and it was hard to let them go after all we'd been through, but I knew I had to do this last part of the quest by myself. If things went wrong, if the gods didn't believe me ... I wanted Annabeth and Grover to survive to tell Chiron the truth.**

"He's so sweet," Aphrodite smiled. "I'll definitely believe him."

Annabeth smiled at Percy who had his head in her lap and was starting to drool a little bit.

**I hopped in a taxi and headed into Manhattan.**

**Thirty minutes later, I walked into the lobby of the Empire State Building.**

**I must have looked like a homeless kid, with my tattered clothes and my scraped-up face. I hadn't slept in at least twenty-four hours.**

**I went up to the guard at the front desk and said, "Six hundredth floor."**

"He must have looked retarded," Thalia laughed.

**He was reading a huge book with a picture of a wizard on the front. I wasn't much into fantasy, but the book must've been good, because the guard took a while to look up. "No such floor, kiddo."**

"Idiot guard," Poseidon sighed. "I think anyone could tell from the outside that there aren't six hundred floors."

**"I need an audience with Zeus."**

**He gave me a vacant smile. "Sorry?"**

**"You heard me."**

**I was about to decide this guy was just a regular mortal, and I'd better run for it before he called the straitjacket patrol, when he said, "No appointment, no audience, kiddo. Lord Zeus doesn't see anyone unannounced."**

"You didn't tell him?" Poseidon asked.

"How am I supposed to know?" Zeus asked. "It hasn't happened yet."

**"Oh, I think he'll make an exception." I slipped off my backpack and unzipped the top.**

**The guard looked inside at the metal cylinder, not getting what it was for a few seconds. Then his face went pale. "That isn't..."**

**"Yes, it is," I promised. "You want me take it out and—"**

**"No! No!" He scrambled out of his seat, fumbled around his desk for a key card, then handed it to me. "Insert this in the security slot. Make sure nobody else is in the elevator with you."**

"We should have given him ours," Travis said to Conner, who nodded.

"Given what?" Katie asked.

"Are key card," Conner explained. "We made an exact copy a while back when we visited."

"You stole a key card from Olympus!" Zeus shouted.

"Duh, son of Hermes," Travis said, as if it was the most obvious thing.

**I did as he told me. As soon as the elevator doors closed, I slipped the key into the slot. The card disappeared and a new button appeared on the console, a red one that said 600.**

**I pressed it and waited, and waited.**

**Muzak played. "Raindrops keep falling on my head..."**

"You need new music," Will said. He looked over at his dad. "Why don't you hook them up with something dad?"

"Tried to," Apollo huffed. "But the music was too good, that minor gods and other immortals started taking the elevator up and down just to dance in it."

"Party in the elevator," Conner thought. "Sounds a little weird."

"And that's saying something," Piper said. "Especially from him."

**Finally, ****_ding. _****The doors slid open. I stepped out and almost had a heart attack.**

"Well that would be a shame," Hades smiled.

**I was standing on a narrow stone walkway in the middle of the air. Below me was Manhattan, from the height of an airplane.**

Thalia paled. _I'd die!_

**In front of me, white marble steps wound up the spine of a cloud, into the sky. My eyes followed the stairway to its end, where my brain just could not accept what I saw.**

**Look again, my brain said.**

**We're looking, my eyes insisted. It's really there.**

"Wow," Nico said as the rest laughed. "He's having a debate with his eyes and brain at the worst time."

"Well it is amazing to see," Annabeth said.

"Even more so now," Percy whispered to Annabeth.

**From the top of the clouds rose the decapitated peak of a mountain, its summit covered with snow. Clinging to the mountainside were dozens of multileveled palaces—a city of mansions—all with white-columned porticos, gilded terraces, and bronze braziers glowing with a thousand fires. Roads wound crazily up to the peak, where the largest palace gleamed against the snow. Precariously perched gar dens bloomed with olive trees and rosebushes. I could make out an open-air market filled with colorful tents, a stone amphitheater built on one side of the mountain, a hippodrome and a coliseum on the other. It was an Ancient Greek city, except it wasn't in ruins. It was new, and clean, and colorful, the way Athens must've looked twenty-five hundred years ago.**

"It's amazing," Athena and Annabeth said dreamily.

**This place can't be here, I told myself. The tip of a mountain hanging over New York City like a billion-ton asteroid? How could something like that be anchored above the Empire State Building, in plain sight of millions of people, and not get noticed?**

"Same reason why mortals thought you and Ares were having a shootout instead of a sword fight," Demeter said.

**But here it was. And here I was.**

**My trip through Olympus was a daze. I passed some giggling wood nymphs who threw olives at me from their garden.**

Annabeth glared and grabbed onto Percy's hand.

**Hawkers in the market offered to sell me ambrosia-on-a-stick, and a new shield, and a genuine glitter-weave replica of the Golden Fleece,**

"We have the real one," Clarisse whispered, loud enough for the demigod's ears only.

"Thank gods for that," Thalia smiled and looked at Percy.

**as seen on Hephaestus-TV The nine muses were tuning their instruments for a concert in the park while a small crowd gathered—satyrs and naiads and a bunch of good-looking teenagers who might've been minor gods and goddesses. Nobody seemed worried about an impending civil war. In fact, everybody seemed in a festive mood.**

"It's the end of the world," Travis cheered. "Let's party!"

**Several of them turned to watch me pass, and whispered to themselves.**

**I climbed the main road, toward the big palace at the peak. It was a reverse copy of the palace in the Underworld.**

**There, everything had been black and bronze. Here, everything glittered white and silver.**

"Yes, because up here, we're actually happy and sane," Demeter said.

"Are you suggesting I'm insane?" Hades glared.

"Oh, I'm sorry," Demeter faked innocence. "Let me make it clear, you're insane!"

"How come we don't argue like that?" Nico whispered to Katie.

Katie raised an eyebrow. "Would you like too?"

"I'm good," Nico said quickly, remembering all the bruises the Stolls have.

**I realized Hades must've built his palace to resemble this one. He wasn't welcomed in Olympus except on the winter solstice, so he'd built his own Olympus underground.**

"Jealous?" Zeus smiled.

"Just read," Hades grumbled.

**Despite my bad experience with him, I felt a little sorry for the guy. To be banished from this place seemed really unfair. It would make anybody bitter.**

Hades just remained quiet, but was smiling a little on the inside.

_Maybe I'll keep him alive. _Hades thought. _Boy is definitely different from other hero's._

**Steps led up to a central courtyard. Past that, the throne room.**

**_Room _****really isn't the right word. The place made Grand Central Station look like a broom closet. Massive columns rose to a domed ceiling, which was gilded with moving constellations.**

Everyone eyed the room they were currently in and agreed.

**Twelve thrones, built for beings the size of Hades, were arranged in an inverted U, just like the cabins at Camp Half-Blood. An enormous fire crackled in the central hearth pit. The thrones were empty except for two at the end: the head throne on the right, and the one to its immediate left. I didn't have to be told who the two gods were that were sitting there, waiting for me to approach. I came toward them, my legs trembling.**

"Well that sucks," Hermes sighed. "We're not even there."

"I know," Aphrodite frowned. "Now I can't protect him."

"I got him Aphrodite," Poseidon smiled and then stared hard at Zeus. "Trust me."

**The gods were in giant human form, as Hades had been, but I could barely look at them without feeling a tingle, as if my body were starting to burn. Zeus, the Lord of the Gods, wore a dark blue pinstriped suit. He sat on a simple throne of solid platinum. He had a well-trimmed beard, marbled gray and black like a storm cloud. His face was proud and handsome and grim, his eyes rainy gray.**

"Good description," Zeus nodded. "I thought I was going to vaporize him if he called me a cherub."

"Get over it," Dionysus whined.

**As I got nearer to him, the air crackled and smelled of ozone.**

**The god sitting next to him was his brother, without a doubt, but he was dressed very differently. He reminded me of a beachcomber from Key West. He wore leather sandals, khaki Bermuda shorts, and a Tommy Bahama shirt with coconuts and parrots all over it.**

Everyone eyed Poseidon, as he wore the same thing.

**His skin was deeply tanned, his hands scarred like an old-time fisherman's. His hair was black, like mine. His face had that same brooding look that had always gotten me branded a rebel. But his eyes, sea green like mine, were surrounded by sun-crinkles that told me he smiled a lot, too.**

Poseidon smiled.

"I smile," Zeus frowned.

"Yeah right," Hera laughed.

**His throne was a deep-sea fisherman's chair. It was the simple swiveling kind, with a black leather seat and a built-in holster for a fishing pole. Instead of a pole, the holster held a bronze trident, flickering with green light around the tips.**

**The gods weren't moving or speaking, but there was tension in the air, as if they'd just finished an argument.**

"Like usual," Demeter said.

"Like you're any better," Poseidon laughed. "Our arguments compared to you and Hades is considered small."

**I approached the fisherman's throne and knelt at his feet. "Father."**

**I dared not look up. My heart was racing. I could feel the energy emanating from the two gods. If I said the wrong thing, I had no doubt they could blast me into dust.**

"I wouldn't," Poseidon said. "But I'm not sure about your uncle."

**To my left, Zeus spoke. "Should you not address the master of this house first, boy?"**

"The boy has a name brother," Hestia said.

"Yes," Poseidon agreed. "And just because you're the _master _of the house, doesn't mean you get what you want."

"Does to," Zeus glared.

"Does not," Poseidon spat back.

"Point proven," Demeter sighed. "Please continue Apollo."

**I kept my head down, and waited.**

**"Peace, brother," Poseidon finally said. His voice stirred my oldest memories: that warm glow I remembered as a baby, the sensation of this god's hand on my forehead, "The boy defers to his father. This is only right."**

"He has a point," Athena said.

**"You still claim him then?" Zeus asked, menacingly. "You claim this child whom you sired against our sacred oath?"**

"You're such a hypocrite dad," Thalia said angrily. "I don't know if you noticed, but Jason and I are your children."

"She's right dad," Jason agreed.

"Yeah but I'm king," Zeus whined.

"A lousy one," Poseidon mumbled.

**"I have admitted my wrongdoing," Poseidon said. "Now I would hear him speak."**

Sally glared at Poseidon. "My son is not a wrongdoing."

Poseidon's face darkened in sadness. "I know that," He said softly. "I didn't mean it like that."

**Wrongdoing.**

**A lump welled up in my throat. Was that all I was? A wrongdoing? The result of a god's mistake?**

"No," Sally said. "You weren't a mistake, not for me." Sally hugged her son tightly.

The goddesses smiled at Sally, as Poseidon bowed down in shame.

**"I have spared him once already," Zeus grumbled. "Daring to fly through my domain ... pah! I should have blasted him out of the sky for his impudence."**

"You're so stubborn," Thalia rolled her eyes. "He just got your bolt back."

**"And risk destroying your own master bolt?" Poseidon asked calmly. "Let us hear him out, brother."**

**Zeus grumbled some more. "I shall listen," he decided. "Then I shall make up my mind whether or not to cast this boy down from Olympus."**

"We'll see about that," Poseidon eyed him.

**"Perseus," Poseidon said. "Look at me."**

**I did, and I wasn't sure what I saw in his face. There was no clear sign of love or approval. Nothing to encourage me. It was like looking at the ocean: some days, you could tell what mood it was in. Most days, though, it was unreadable, mysterious.**

Poseidon looked over at Percy and smiled when he saw Percy laughing with Annabeth, Thalia, and Nico.

**I got the feeling Poseidon really didn't know what to think of me. He didn't know whether he was happy to have me as a son or not.**

"I am happy," Poseidon pleaded.

**In a strange way, I was glad that Poseidon was so distant. If he'd tried to apologize, or told me he loved me, or even smiled, it would've felt fake. Like a human dad, making some lame excuse for not being around. I could live with that. After all, I wasn't sure about him yet, either.**

"You're not the only one," Nico whispered.

The gods and goddesses felt ashamed that they let their children think that they didn't care.

**"Address Lord Zeus, boy," Poseidon told me. "Tell him your story."**

"The boy has a name," Sally said quietly.

**So I told Zeus everything, just as it had happened. I took out the metal cylinder, which began sparking in the Sky God's presence, and laid it at his feet.**

**There was a long silence, broken only by the crackle of the hearth fire.**

**Zeus opened his palm. The lightning bolt flew into it.**

"Finally," Zeus sighed. "I can breathe normally again." He got six slaps for that- Hera, Aphrodite, Athena, Artemis, and Hestia.

**As he closed his fist, the metallic points flared with electricity, until he was holding what looked more like the classic thunderbolt, a twenty-foot javelin of arcing, hissing energy that made the hairs on my scalp rise.**

**"I sense the boy tells the truth," Zeus muttered. "But that Ares would do such a thing ... it is most unlike him."**

"Yes, see, I'm innocent," Ares nodded his head quickly.

"No you aren't," Athena said. "Father just said that it isn't like you, not that you're not to blame, which you are."

**"He is proud and impulsive," Poseidon said. "It runs in the family."**

**"Lord?" I asked.**

**They both said, "Yes?"**

The two eyed each other.

**"Ares didn't act alone. Someone else—something else— came up with the idea."**

"Yes, and we know exactly who it is," Poseidon said darkly. "but your dear uncle is too stubborn and proud to admit."

"But what about you Poseidon?" Aphrodite asked. "Don't YOU have something to admit."

"No," Poseidon said. Aphrodite let it drop, for now.

**I described my dreams, and the feeling I'd had on the beach, that momentary breath of evil that had seemed to stop the world, and made Ares back off from killing me.**

**"In the dreams," I said, "the voice told me to bring the bolt to the Underworld. Ares hinted that he'd been having dreams, too. I think he was being used, just as I was, to start a war."**

"I was not being used!" Ares shouted.

"Yes you were," Hephaestus grumbled. "Now shut up."

**"You are accusing Hades, after all?" Zeus asked.**

"Leave it alone," Hades rolled his eyes.

Nico too rolled his eyes. He hated how his dad was mistreated on Olympus and always accused of every act of injustice.

**"No," I said. "I mean, Lord Zeus, I've been in the presence of Hades. This feeling on the beach was different. It was the same thing I felt when I got close to that pit. That was the entrance to Tartarus, wasn't it? Something powerful and evil is stirring down there ... something even older than the gods."**

"The boy's smarter then he appears," Athena said. "And he is right."

**Poseidon and Zeus looked at each other. They had a quick, intense discussion in Ancient Greek. I only caught one word. ****_Father._**

"This isn't good," Hades said quietly.

"Way to state the obvious." Hermes said.

**Poseidon made some kind of suggestion, but Zeus cut him off. Poseidon tried to argue. Zeus held up his hand angrily. "We will speak of this no more," Zeus said.**

"Look at that," Poseidon glared. "Even your book self is arrogant and stupid."

"Take that back," Zeus growled.

Cerberus, who had been sleeping near Percy, heard the growl and perked his head up at Zeus.

"No," Poseidon said. "Even in the book you won't discuss the matter."

"For good reason, he has yet to rise," Zeus shouted.

"So we're supposed to wait until he rises?" Poseidon asked. "That would be awfully stupid."

"JUST SHUT UP!" Percy, Nico, and Thalia yelled.

"We all know that Kronos is rising. Instead of arguing about it, get off your lazy butts and DO something!" The three yelled. Everybody stared at them.

**"I must go personally to purify this thunderbolt in the waters of Lemnos, to remove the human taint from its metal."**

**He rose and looked at me. His expression softened just a fraction of a degree. "You have done me a service, boy. Few heroes could have accomplished as much."**

"Yet we did it," Percy smiled along with Annabeth.

"Cocky," Travis laughed.

"Many times."

"Stop bragging."

**"I had help, sir," I said. "Grover Underwood and Annabeth Chase—"**

**"To show you my thanks, I shall spare your life.**

"You cut him off," Athena said annoyed. "He was about to tell you about my daughter's help!"

"Sorry," Zeus grumbled.

**I do not trust you, Perseus Jackson. I do not like what your arrival means for the future of Olympus. But for the sake of peace in the family, I shall let you live."**

"Wow, that's considerate," Hera rolled her eyes.

"You better like what he brings to Olympus," Nico whispered angrily. "He saved your sorry ass."

"Nico!" Rachel whispered.

"What, he's right," Thalia whispered back.

"There are seven year olds!"

"So."

**"Um... thank you, sir."**

**"Do not presume to fly again. Do not let me find you here when I return. Otherwise you shall taste this bolt. And it shall be your last sensation."**

**Thunder shook the palace. With a blinding flash of lightning, Zeus was gone.**

**I was alone in the throne room with my father. "Your uncle," Poseidon sighed, "has always had a flair for dramatic exits. I think he would've done well as the god of theater."**

"You have a point," Demeter said.

"I agree as well," Hera smiled.

"Not true," Zeus said.

**An uncomfortable silence.**

**"Sir," I said, "what was in that pit?"**

**Poseidon regarded me. "Have you not guessed?"**

**"Kronos," I said. "The king of the Titans."**

"And there it is, the elephant in the room," Will said.

"Where?" Conner turned around.

"Moron, it's an expression," Thalia shook her head.

"She said a bad word." Seven year old Annabeth and Percy said. They looked at each other and blushed.

**Even in the throne room of Olympus, far away from Tartarus, the name ****_Kronos_**** darkened the room, made the hearth fire seem not quite so warm on my back.**

**Poseidon gripped his trident. "In the First War, Percy, Zeus cut our father Kronos into a thousand pieces, just as Kronos had done to his own father, Ouranos. Zeus cast Kronos's remains into the darkest pit of Tartarus. The Titan army was scattered, their mountain fortress on Etna destroyed, their monstrous allies driven to the farthest corners of the earth. And yet Titans cannot die, any more than we gods can. Whatever is left of Kronos is still alive in some hideous way, still conscious in his eternal pain, still hungering for power."**

"Which he will never get," Zeus said.

**"He's healing," I said. "He's coming back."**

"Don't jinx it," Hades said.

"You can't stop it," Annabeth said. "As much as you want to, you can't."

**Poseidon shook his head. "From time to time, over the eons, Kronos has stirred. He enters men's nightmares and breathes evil thoughts. He wakens restless monsters from the depths. But to suggest he could rise from the pit is another thing."**

**"That's what he intends, Father. That's what he said."**

**Poseidon was silent for a long time.**

**"Lord Zeus has closed discussion on this matter. He will not allow talk of Kronos. You have completed your quest, child. That is all you need to do."**

"The boy's right," Hestia said.

"Yes, but arguing will do nothing," Poseidon said calmly.

**"But—" I stopped myself. Arguing would do no good. It would very possibly anger the only god who I had on my side.**

"It wouldn't," Poseidon smiled.

"Yeah, and I'm on your side Perce," Apollo said.

"Me too," Aphrodite added. "I wouldn't leave a handsome face like yours."

"My name could be added to that list," Demeter smiled. "Anyone who eats my cookies and likes them has my vote."

Artemis perked up. "Even if he is a male, he is a true hero. I will be on his side as well."

"Well I can't stand the punk," Ares grunted. "I'd kill him if I had the chance."

"You did have a chance," Hephaestus smiled. "And you failed, and for that, I'll also join Percy's side."

"Okay okay, we get it," Zeus interrupted. "You're all on his side, now shut up!"

Athena rolled her eyes but thought quietly. _I too will defend your honor Perseus Jackson._

_For Poseidon._ Aphrodite thought back.

**"As ... as you wish, Father."**

**A faint smile played on his lips. "Obedience does not come naturally to you, does it?"**

"Not at all," Most demigods said.

**"No ... sir."**

**"I must take some blame for that, I suppose. The sea does not like to be restrained." He rose to his full height and took up his trident. Then he shimmered and became the size of a regular man, standing directly in front of me. "You must go, child. But first, know that your mother has returned."**

The cheers in the room shook the throne room.

Sally beamed at Poseidon and then squeezed Percy.

"But how?" Athena said, shocked yet happy.

**I stared at him, completely stunned. "My mother?"**

"He must have been so happy," Hera smiled.

"I was."

**"You will find her at home. Hades sent her when you recovered his helm. Even the Lord of Death pays his debts."**

All eyes turned to Hades who smiled faintly. "Even I have a heart."

Nico beamed at his father. _This is what people don't see._

"Did not expect that," Leo whispered to Jason.

"Shut up man," Jason whispered. "Before he blows us off Olympus."

Poseidon, who had been smiling at Sally, turned to Hades and smiled. "Thank you brother."

Hades nodded and turned to Percy. "He was a man of his word, I guess my future self thought so too."

**My heart was pounding. I couldn't believe it. "Do you ... would you ..."**

"Aw, he's wants to invite you over," Aphrodite smiled through tears. "He's too sweet."

Poseidon smiled at Sally who smiled back.

**I wanted to ask if Poseidon would come with me to see her, but then I realized that was ridiculous. I imagined loading the God of the Sea into a taxi and taking him to the Upper East Side. If he'd wanted to see my mom all these years, he would have. And there was Smelly Gabe to think about.**

"I would have," Poseidon said quietly. "If I could."

**Poseidon's eyes took on a little sadness. "When you return home, Percy, you must make an important choice. You will find a package waiting in your room."**

"What is it?" Conner asked.

"If he wanted him to know, he would have told him," Chris explained.

"Good point," Conner said. "Thank gods you manage the brains in the Hermes cabin."

**"A package?"**

**"You will understand when you see it. No one can choose your path, Percy. You must decide."**

"Sounds secretive," Leo whispered.

"Why are you whispering?" Piper asked.

"I dunno, seemed appropriate."

**I nodded, though I didn't know what he meant.**

**"Your mother is a queen among women," Poseidon said wistfully.**

Sally blushed as did Poseidon as the male gods wolf whistled. Artemis smacked Apollo and Hermes.

**"I had not met such a mortal woman in a thousand years. Still ... I am sorry you were born, child. I have brought you a hero's fate, and a hero's fate is never happy. It is never anything but tragic."**

"So you regret he was born?" Demeter asked.

"No," Poseidon answered quickly. "But our children's lives aren't easy, and usually end with tragedy."

The gods eyed their children who only nodded.

Only the Stolls smiled at their father.

"We have some fun," Travis threw out.

**I tried not to feel hurt. Here was my own dad, telling me he was sorry I'd been born.**

"It's not like that Percy," Poseidon said quietly.

**"I don't mind, Father."**

**"Not yet, perhaps," he said. "Not yet. But it was an unforgivable mistake on my part."**

**"I'll leave you then." I bowed awkwardly. "I—I won't bother you again."**

"You made him sad brother," Hestia said.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean too," Poseidon apologized.

**I was five steps away when he called, "Perseus."**

**I turned.**

**There was a different light in his eyes, a fiery kind of pride. "You did well, Perseus. Do not misunderstand me. Whatever else you do, know that you are mine. You are a true son of the Sea God."**

"He is, and his favorite," Annabeth ruffled Percy's hair.

"Annabeth," Percy whined.

"Sorry."

**As I walked back through the city of the gods, conversations stopped. The muses paused their concert.**

**People and satyrs and naiads all turned toward me, their faces filled with respect and gratitude, and as I passed, they knelt, as if I were some kind of hero.**

"You are a hero," Piper said.

"Yeah, an awesome one," Leo added.

Jason nodded. "They should bow, he just prevented a war."

**Fifteen minutes later, still in a trance, I was back on the streets of Manhattan.**

**I caught a taxi to my mom's apartment, rang the door bell, and there she was—my beautiful mother, smelling of peppermint and licorice, the weariness and worry evaporating from her face as soon as she saw me.**

**"Percy! Oh, thank goodness. Oh, my baby."**

Sally smiled with tears in her eyes.

"Baby," Clarisse whispered.

"Be nice," Chris whispered back. "we don't want to start a war."

**She crushed the air right out of me. We stood in the hallway as she cried and ran her hands through my hair.**

**I'll admit it—my eyes were a little misty, too.**

"Good," Hera nodded. "Shows you love your mother very much."

**I was shaking, I was so relieved to see her.**

**She told me she'd just appeared at the apartment that morning, scaring Gabe half out of his wits.**

**She didn't remember anything since the Minotaur, and couldn't believe it when Gabe told her I was a wanted criminal, traveling across the country, blowing up national monuments. She'd been going out of her mind with worry all day because she hadn't heard the news. Gabe had forced her to go into work, saying she had a month's salary to make up and she'd better get started.**

"Ah, what an ass," Thalia screamed. "Can we please kill him?"

"Yeah," Ares cheered. "Let's gut him!"

**I swallowed back my anger and told her my own story. I tried to make it sound less scary than it had been, but that wasn't easy. I was just getting to the fight with Ares when Gabe's voice interrupted from the living room. "Hey, Sally! That meat loaf done yet or what?"**

Poseidon gripped his trident.

**She closed her eyes. "He isn't going to be happy to see you, Percy. The store got half a million phone calls today from Los Angeles ... something about free appliances."**

"Good, he deserves to suffer," Will said. "He treats Mrs. Jackson horribly."

**"Oh, yeah. About that..."**

**She managed a weak smile. "Just don't make him angrier, all right? Come on."**

**In the month I'd been gone, the apartment had turned into Gabeland. Garbage was ankle deep on the carpet. The sofa had been reupholstered in beer cans. Dirty socks and underwear hung off the lampshades.**

"I'd die," Aphrodite cringed.

**Gabe and three of his big goony friends were playing poker at the table.**

"Like usual," Grover rolled his eyes.

**When Gabe saw me, his cigar dropped out of his mouth. His face got redder than lava. "You got nerve coming here, you little punk. I thought the police—"**

**"He's not a fugitive after all," my mom interjected. "Isn't that wonderful, Gabe?"**

**Gabe looked back and forth between us. He didn't seem to think my homecoming was so wonderful.**

**"Bad enough I had to give back your life insurance money, Sally," he growled.**

"He has to be the worst man I've encountered in a long time," Artemis spat. "Disgusting and wasteful space of air."

**"Get me the phone. I'll call the cops."**

**"Gabe, no!"**

**He raised his eyebrows. "Did you just say ****_'no'? _****You think I'm gonna put up with this punk again? I can still press charges against him for ruining my Camaro."**

"It was a piece of junk," Leo said. "you could always build a new one."

**"But—"**

**He raised his hand, and my mother flinched.**

**For the first time, I realized something. Gabe had hit my mother.**

Poseidon's eyes widened in horror before Olympus shook with rage.

"Brother stop," Zeus shouted. Columns shook and cracked, the floors broke into pieces, and the demigods started to shake and fall off their seats. "STOP"

Annabeth, who was holding onto Percy for dear life, watched as Sally fell off her seat and joined the Stolls, Thalia, Rachel, and Jason on the floor.

Chiron was gripping the side wall and had to dance around in his hooves as the floor cracked under him.

"Stop Poseidon," Hades yelled.

Annabeth, who held Baby Percy who was crying from the shaking, managed to sway off the sofa and slowly make her way to an angry Poseidon. In a matter of seconds, she was leaning on his throne and raising Baby Percy to Poseidon.

Poseidon caught the crying look on his sons face and the earthquake on Olympus stopped. He immediately grabbed him and held him close.

"I'm sorry. Shhh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean it," Poseidon whispered.

Everyone sat back and stared a little frightened at Poseidon who was still holding Baby Percy close to him. Percy held Annabeth and Seven year old Percy held syo Annabeth.

"Please read Apollo," Zeus said quietly.

**I didn't know when, or how much. But I was sure he'd done it. Maybe ****_it _****had been going on for years, when I wasn't around.**

**A balloon of anger started expanding in my chest. I came toward Gabe, instinctively taking my pen out of my pocket.**

"Mortal Percy," Chiron whispered. "It won't work."

**He just laughed. "What, punk? You gonna write on me? You touch me, and you are going to jail forever, you understand?"**

"Gods, I want to kill him right now," Clarisse shouted.

**"Hey, Gabe," his friend Eddie interrupted. "He's just a kid."**

**Gabe looked at him resentfully and mimicked in a falsetto voice: ****_"Just a kid."_**

**His other friends laughed like idiots.**

"I want to kill them all," Annabeth snapped.

**"I'll be nice to you, punk." Gabe showed me his tobacco-stained teeth. "I'll give you five minutes to get your stuff and clear out. After that, I call the police."**

**"Gabe!" my mother pleaded.**

**"He ran away," Gabe told her. "Let him stay gone."**

"He's better off without you," Nico said. "The streets are cleaner than his place anyways."

**I was itching to uncap Riptide, but even if I did, the blade wouldn't hurt humans. And Gabe, by the loosest definition, was human.**

"Barely," Athena muttered.

**My mother took my arm. "Please, Percy. Come on. We'll go to your room."**

**I let her pull me away, my hands still trembling with rage.**

**My room had been completely filled with Gabe's junk. There were stacks of used car batteries, a rotting bouquet of sympathy flowers with a card from somebody who'd seen his Barbara Walters interview.**

"What a joke," Rachel rolled her eyes.

**"Gabe is just upset, honey," my mother told me. "I'll talk to him later. I'm sure it will work out."**

**"Mom, it'll never work out. Not as long as Gabe's here."**

**She wrung her hands nervously. "I can ... I'll take you to work with me for the rest of the summer. In the fall, maybe there's another boarding school—"**

**"Mom."**

Sally bowered her head. He was right. As much as she hated it, he was right.

**She lowered her eyes. "I'm trying, Percy. I just... I need some time."**

**A package appeared on my bed. At least, I could've sworn it hadn't been there a moment before.**

**It was a battered cardboard box about the right size to fit a basketball. The address on the mailing slip was in my own handwriting:**

**_The Gods_**

**_MountOlympus_**

**_600th Floor,_**

**_EmpireState Building_**

**_New York, NY_**

**_With best wishes,_**

**_PERCY JACKSON_**

**Over the top in black marker, in a man's clear, bold print, was the address of our apartment, and the words: RETURN TO SENDER.**

"Medusa's head!" Thalia realized. "Wait…but that means….ALRIGHT!"

"What? I don't get it," Nico scratched his head.

Athena smiled at the idea and then addressed the confused readers. "That's his choice, whether he accepts that fact that he goes to camp and train, or lives with Gabe and hides his scent. It's basically saying that he could kill Gabe."

"DO IT!" Nearly everyone shouted.

**Suddenly I understood what Poseidon had told me on Olympus.**

**A package. A decision.**

**_Whatever else you do, know that you are mine. You are a true son of the Sea God._**

Poseidon smiled, as he held a now happy Baby Percy.

**I looked at my mother. "Mom, do you want Gabe gone?"**

**"Percy, it isn't that simple. I—"**

**"Mom, just tell me. That jerk has been hitting you. Do you want him gone or not?"**

"I think everyone does," Piper said.

**She hesitated, then nodded almost imperceptibly. "Yes, Percy. I do. And I'm trying to get up my courage to tell him. But you can't do this for me. You can't solve my problems."**

**I looked at the box.**

**I ****_could _****solve her problem. I wanted to slice that package open, plop it on the poker table, and take out what was inside. I could start my very own statue garden, right there in the living room.**

"I'd buy them," Hades smiled. "Then throw them into Tartarus."

**That's what a Greek hero would do in the stories, I thought. That's what Gabe deserves.**

"Yes but his death would be quick," Dionysus grunted. "He should suffer, that'd be fun."

"You sound like Hades," Hermes said.

"And you sound like a voice I don't want to hear," Dionysus shot back.

"Ass," Hermes mumbled.

**But a hero's story always ended in tragedy. Poseidon had told me that.**

**I remembered the Underworld. I thought about Gabe's spirit drifting forever in the Fields of Asphodel, or condemned to some hideous torture behind the barbed wire of the Fields of Punishment—an eternal poker game, sitting up to his waist in boiling oil listening to opera music. Did I have the right to send someone there? Even Gabe?**

**A month ago, I wouldn't have hesitated. Now ...**

"You do, he deserves it," Artemis said. "You should never hit a woman, let alone force her to work."

**"I can do it," I told my mom. "One look inside this box, and he'll never bother you again."**

**She glanced at the package, and seemed to understand immediately. "No, Percy," she said, stepping away. "You can't."**

**"Poseidon called you a queen," I told her. "He said he hadn't met a woman like you in a thousand years."**

**Her cheeks flushed. "Percy—"**

"Ah ah ah, maybe the fires still there," Aphrodite wiggled her eyebrows. "I love this."

Sally blushed when Poseidon winked at her.

**"You deserve better than this, Mom. You should go to college, get your degree. You can write your novel, meet a nice guy maybe, live in a nice house. You don't need to protect me anymore by staying with Gabe. Let me get rid of him."**

"I really like this one," Hera smiled. "Protecting his family, that's what it's about."

"Yes, I agree," Hestia smiled. She turned to the other children. "Though I'm sure all of these children are just like that."

The demigods blushed at the compliment.

**She wiped a tear off her cheek. "You sound so much like your father," she said. "He offered to stop the tide for me once. He offered to build me a palace at the bottom of the sea. He thought he could solve all my problems with a wave of his hand."**

"I could have you know," Poseidon smiled at her. "I would have done anything, still would."

Aphrodite cried in her throne as all the male gods groaned.

Athena, who was happy for Sally, felt a pang of something. _Why do I care if he does that for her? I already have a palace. I don't need one at the bottom of the sea._

**"What's wrong with that?"**

**Her multicolored eyes seemed to search inside me. "I think you know, Percy. I think you're enough like me to understand. If my life is going to mean anything, I have to live it myself. I can't let a god take care of me ... or my son. I have to ... find the courage on my own. Your quest has reminded me of that."**

"True heart of a woman," Artemis smiled. She turned to Sally. "You are an amazing person. Perhaps when the book is done, I could show you around Olympus."

"I'm in," Aphrodite shouted. "We could have a makeover too."

Sally blushed and watched as Artemis mouthed the words 'sorry' at her.

**We listened to the sound of poker chips and swearing, ESPN from the living room television.**

**"I'll leave the box," I said. "If he threatens you …"**

**She looked pale, but she nodded. "Where will you go, Percy?"**

**"Half-Blood Hill."**

**"For the summer ... or forever?"**

"I don't think Percy would leave forever Sally," Annabeth explained. "He cares about you too much."

**"I guess that depends."**

**We locked eyes, and I sensed that we had an agreement. We would see how things stood at the end of the summer.**

**She kissed my forehead. "You'll be a hero, Percy. You'll be the greatest of all."**

Zeus snorted but noticed the glares he was getting from many demigods.

"Yeah," Nico agreed. "There's no doubt about, Percy's the greatest out there."

Many agreed, even Clarisse nodded, though she didn't seem happy about it. Percy blushed at all of the comments he was getting.

Leo and Piper just watched and wondered what could possibly give someone that title. But if he could complete a quest that difficult at twelve without any training and defeat a god, believing isn't really that hard.

Jason on the other hand, thought about the Roman camp and how Percy would definitely make it now. Though he was extremely jealous right now, especially with the looks everyone had in their eyes, especially Piper, he blamed it on the fact that their dads were rivals, so it only made sense. Even Thalia had mentioned that she and Percy got into many arguments, and even a fight.

**I took one last look around my bedroom. I had a feeling I'd never see it again. Then I walked with my mother to the front door.**

**"Leaving so soon, punk?" Gabe called after me. "Good riddance."**

"Go die in a hole," Travis said.

"Nice threat," Conner laughed.

"Why thank you."

**I had one last twinge of doubt. How could I turn down the perfect chance to take revenge on him? I was leaving here without saving my mother.**

**"Hey, Sally," he yelled. "What about that meat loaf, huh?"**

**A steely look of anger flared in my mother's eyes, and I thought, just maybe, I was leaving her in good hands after all. Her own.**

Sally smiled.

**"The meat loaf is coming right up, dear," she told Gabe. "Meat loaf surprise."**

**She looked at me, and winked.**

**The last thing I saw as the door swung closed was my mother staring at Gabe, as if she were contemplating how he would look as a garden statue.**

"Those, were some SERIOUS skills dude!" Yelled Hermes. The rest of the throne room just rolled their eyes.


	35. The prophecy comes true

"**The Prophecy Comes True,"** Hestia read.

"The prophecy?" Leo repeated. "I thought it came true already."

No one answered but Percy's face darkened.

_Things are going to get messy. _Percy eyed his father and Hermes.

**We were the first heroes to return alive to Half-Blood Hill since Luke, so of course everybody treated us as if we'd won some reality-TV contest. **

"It was awesome," Travis smiled.

"Yeah," Conner agreed. "While everyone was celebrating, we raided each cabin."

"That's why when I got back I couldn't find my favorite book." Annabeth said while glaring at the Stolls.

"You celebrate by stealing?" Piper asked as the other demigods glared at the Stolls.

"Is there any other way?" Travis asked.

**According to camp tradition, we wore laurel wreaths to a big feast prepared in our honor, then led a procession down to the bonfire, where we got to burn the burial shrouds our cabins had made for us in our absence.**

**Annabeth's shroud was so beautiful—gray silk with embroidered owls—I told her it seemed a shame not to bury her in it. **

"Smart ass," Annabeth mumbled with a smile.

"But I'm YOUR smart ass."

**She punched me and told me to shut up.**

Athena nodded at her daughter while everyone laughed.

"Like usual," Thalia snickered. "She tells him what to do."

**Being the son of Poseidon, I didn't have any cabin mates, so the Ares cabin had volunteered to make my shroud. They'd taken an old bed sheet and painted smiley faces with X'ed-out eyes around the border, and the word LOSER painted really big in the middle.**

"That loser saved your butt," Nico looked at Clarisse.

"He broke my spear," Clarisse argued.

"Give me a break," Nico sighed. "It's a spear, not a leg."

**It was fun to burn.**

"Next time, I'm gonna make Clarisse's shroud." Percy smirked.

**As Apollo's cabin led the sing-along and passed out s'mores, I was surrounded by my old Hermes cabinmates, Annabeth's friends from Athena, and Grover's satyr buddies, who were admiring the brand-new searcher's license he'd received from the Council of Cloven Elders. **

"Congrats Grover," Piper smiled at him.

"Thanks," He blushed.

Dionysus gave him a quick nod, as some of the gods congratulated him.

**The council had called Grover's performance on the quest "Brave to the point of indigestion. Horns-and-whiskers above anything we have seen in the past."**

**The only ones not in a party mood were Clarisse and her cabinmates, whose poisonous looks told me they'd never forgive me for disgracing their dad.**

"He did that himself," Aphrodite said.

"Yes, I agree," Hera said. "Perseus didn't twist his arm into it."

"You know, I find it REALLY sad that TWELVE year old beat Ares." Hephaestus smirked.

Clarisse just rolled her eyes.

**That was okay with me.**

**Even Dionysus's welcome-home speech wasn't enough to dampen my spirits. "Yes, yes, so the little brat didn't get himself killed and now he'll have an even bigger head. Well, huzzah for that.**

"You have a way with words D," Apollo said.

"I know," Dionysus said.

"My son doesn't have a big head," Poseidon glared at Dionysus. "Unlike you, who think that they are above everyone else."

Dionysus held back an insult, knowing full well that he couldn't take on his uncle.

"I love Poseidon," Will whispered.

"I know," Chris smiled. "He makes Mr. D look like an ass."

**In other announcements, there will be ****_no _****canoe races this Saturday..."**

**I moved back into cabin three, but it didn't feel so lonely anymore. I had my friends to train with during the day. At night, I lay awake and listened to the sea, knowing my father was out there. Maybe he wasn't quite sure about me yet, maybe he hadn't even wanted me born, but he was watching. And so far, he was proud of what I'd done.**

"I'll always be proud Percy," Poseidon smiled down at his son. Percy and Little Percy smiled back while Baby Percy sat on Cerberus' back and rid him around the throne room.

**As for my mother, she had a chance at a new life. Her letter arrived a week after I got back to camp. She told me Gabe had left mysteriously—disappeared off the face of the planet, in fact.**

"ALRIGHT," Most yelled.

Thalia, with the sudden energy, sprinted to Percy, Annabeth, and Sally and engulfed the three in a hug.

"Thank gods Mrs. Jackson," Thalia laughed. "I hated what he did to you and Percy."

"As did I," Poseidon smiled at her. "You did the right thing Sally."

Sally smiled as everyone cheered her on for finally ridding Gabe in her life.

**She'd reported him missing to the police, but she had a funny feeling they would never find him.**

**On a completely unrelated subject, she'd sold her first life-size concrete sculpture, entitled ****_The Poker Player, _****to a collector, through an art gallery in Soho. **

"Damn," Hades grumbled. "I wanted to buy him. I was going to make a lovely chew toy for Ceberus."

**She'd gotten so much money for it, she'd put a deposit down on a new apartment and made a payment on her first semester's tuition at NYU. The Soho gallery was clamoring for more of her work, which they called "a huge step forward in super-ugly neorealism."**

"You're finally going to school," Athena smiled warmly at her. "You deserve it Sally Jackson."

"Uh…thank you," Sally blushed.

**_But don't worry, _****my mom wrote. ****_I'm done with sculpture. I've disposed of that box of tools you left me. It's time for me to turn to writing._**

**At the bottom, she wrote a P.S.: ****_Percy, I've found a good private school here in the city. I've put a deposit down to hold you a spot, in case you want to enroll for seventh grade. You could live at home. But if you want to go year-round at Half-Blood Hill, I'll understand._**

Sally nodded but felt sad about her son leaving her.

**I folded the note carefully and set it on my bedside table. Every night before I went to sleep, I read it again, and I tried to decide how to answer her.**

"He'll do the right thing," Annabeth whispered to her. "He usually does when it's important."

"Hey. I ALWAYS do the right thing." Thalia, Nico, and Annabeth stared at Percy and then busted out laughing.

**On the Fourth of July, the whole camp gathered at the beach for a fireworks display by cabin nine. Being Hephaestus's kids, they weren't going to settle for a few lame red-white-and-blue explosions. They'd anchored a barge offshore and loaded it with rockets the size of Patriot missiles. **

"Damn right," Hephaestus smiled. "My kids don't settle for mediocre fireworks. Right Leo?"

"Right dad," Leo smiled. "If we go big, we go real big!"

**According to Annabeth, who'd seen the show before, the blasts would be sequenced so tightly they'd look like frames of animation across the sky. The finale was supposed to be a couple of hundred-foot-tall Spartan warriors who would crackle to life above the ocean, fight a battle, then explode into a million colors.**

"That's amazing," Jason said.

"It is," Hephaestus said. He winked at Leo. "Though I'm Leo could think of something even better."

"On it dad," Leo smiled. The Argo II was definitely something to brag about to his dad once he saw it.

**As Annabeth and I were spreading a picnic blanket, **

"OH MY GODS," Aphrodite shrieked. "You guys are on a date!" Percy and Annabeth blushed.

**Grover showed up to tell us good-bye. **

"See," Annabeth said.

**He was dressed in his usual jeans and T-shirt and sneakers, but in the last few weeks he'd started to look older, almost high-school age. His goatee had gotten thicker. He'd put on weight. **

"Thanks for noticing Perce," Grover grumbled. Percy smiled meekly.

**His horns had grown at least an inch, so he now had to wear his rasta cap all the time to pass as human.**

**"I'm off," he said. "I just came to say ... well, you know."**

**I tried to feel happy for him. After all, it wasn't every day a satyr got permission to go look for the great god Pan. But it was hard saying good-bye. I'd only known Grover a year, yet he was my oldest friend.**

"I'm not sure if that's really nice or really sad," Travis laughed. "Only a year."

"He always moved around," Katie smacked Travis on the head. "Besides, your best friend is your brother, how sad is that?"

"But he's awesome," Travis complained.

"I am," Conner smiled.

"It was nice," Grover interrupted the three.

**Annabeth gave him a hug. She told him to keep his fake feet on.**

**I asked him where he was going to search first.**

**"Kind of a secret," he said, looking embarrassed. "I wish you could come with me, guys, but humans and Pan …"**

"Well it's a good thing we didn't," Annabeth whispered. "Or else we all would have been captured."

**"We understand," Annabeth said. "You got enough tin cans for the trip?"**

**"Yeah."**

**"And you remembered your reed pipes?"**

**"Jeez, Annabeth," he grumbled. "You're like an old mama goat."**

"I did not," Annabeth complained.

"Did too," Percy laughed. "You even do it with me as a baby."

The demigods laughed as Annabeth blushed.

"I'm not trying to steal him," Annabeth mumbled to Sally who smiled. "Honest."

"I know," Sally smiled. "It's nice that you care for him so much." Percy hugged Annabeth tighter.

"If it wasn't for her, I'd wouldn't be here right now."

**But he didn't really sound annoyed.**

**He gripped his walking stick and slung a backpack over his shoulder. He looked like any hitchhiker you might see on an American highway—nothing like the little runty boy I used to defend from bullies at Yancy Academy.**

"I wasn't a little runty boy," Grover whined.

"You sure," Leo asked. "Because you sound like one."

**"Well," he said, "wish me luck."**

**He gave Annabeth another hug. He clapped me on the shoulder, then headed back through the dunes.**

**Fireworks exploded to life overhead: Hercules killing the Nemean lion, Artemis chasing the boar, George Washington (who, by the way, was a son of Athena) crossing the Delaware.**

**"Hey, Grover," I called.**

**He turned at the edge of the woods.**

**"Wherever you're going—I hope they make good enchiladas."**

"Wow," Rachel said. "That has to be the worst good bye I've ever heard."

Annabeth smiled. "I think it's the best actually."

"Why's that?" Piper asked.

"Because a good bye makes his search seem impossible," Grover cut in. "Even though he joked, he basically said he'll see me soon." Percy smiled at his best friend.

**Grover grinned, and then he was gone, the trees closing around him.**

**"We'll see him again," Annabeth said.**

**I tried to believe it. The fact that no searcher had ever come back in two thousand years ... well, I decided not to think about that. Grover would be the first. He had to be.**

"Yes," Hermes encouraged. "Find him Grover. Please."

Grover nodded, even though he knew he already found him.

**July passed.**

**I spent my days devising new strategies for capture-the-flag and making alliances with the other cabins to keep the banner out of Ares's hands. **

"You mean I spent my days devising new strategies," Annabeth corrected.

"Ihelped." Percy whined like a two year old.

**I got to the top of the climbing wall for the first time without getting scorched by lava.**

"I still can't do it," Jason laughed.

**From time to time, I'd walk past the Big House, glance up at the attic windows, and think about the Oracle. I tried to convince myself that its prophecy had come to completion.**

**_You shall go west, and face the god who has turned._**

**Been there, done that—even though the traitor god had turned out to be Ares rather than Hades.**

"Yes," Hades eyed Ares. "He was the traitor."

**_You shall find what was stolen, and see it safe returned._**

**Check. One master bolt delivered. One helm of darkness back on Hades' oily head.**

"I don't have an oily head!" Hades shouted.

"You could fry eggs on it," Demeter laughed.

Will leaned to Nico. "Let's hope you don't follow your dad's trait on that."

Nico shuddered. "Don't worry."

**_You shall be betrayed by one who calls you a friend._**

Againthemoodgotsurlyatthis**. **

**This line still bothered me. Ares had pretended to be my friend, then betrayed me. That must be what the Oracle meant...**

_If only._ Annabeth thought. Percy hugged Annabeth tighter.

"Punk wishes I was his friend," Ares grumbled.

**_And you shall fail to save what matters most, in the end._**

**I ****_had _****failed to save my mom, but only because I'd let her save herself, and I knew that was the right thing.**

**So why was I still uneasy?**

"Good question," Athena said.

**The last night of the summer session came all too quickly.**

**The campers had one last meal together. We burned part of our dinner for the gods. At the bonfire, the senior counselors awarded the end-of-summer beads.**

**I got my own leather necklace, and when I saw the bead for my first summer, I was glad the firelight covered my blushing. The design was pitch black, with a sea-green trident shimmering in the center.**

The demigods who all had the bead played with it at the mention of it.

"You have your own bead," Poseidon smiled at Percy. Percy blushed and hid his face in Annabeth's hair.

"Seaweed Brain," Annabeth laughed.

**"The choice was unanimous," Luke announced. "This bead commemorates the first Son of the Sea God at this camp, and the quest he undertook into the darkest part of the Underworld to stop a war!"**

"Go Perce," The Stolls cheered.

"And the last Son of the Sea God," Zeus mumbled. Poseidon winked at Percy.

**The entire camp got to their feet and cheered. Even Ares's cabin felt obliged to stand. Athena's cabin steered Annabeth to the front so she could share in the applause.**

Athena smiled at her daughter. _She's back and safe._

**I'm not sure I'd ever felt as happy or sad as I did at that moment. I'd finally found a family, people who cared about me and thought I'd done something right. And in the morning, most of them would be leaving for the year.**

**The next morning, I found a form letter on my bedside table.**

**I knew Dionysus must've filled it out, because he stubbornly insisted on getting my name wrong:**

**_Dear__****Peter Johnson_****__ ,_**

"It's not that hard," Apollo said.

"It is if you don't care," Dionysus mumbled.

"Ass," Artemis muttered.

**_If you intend to stay at Camp Half-Blood year-round, you must inform the Big House by noon today. If you do not announce your intentions, we will assume you have vacated your cabin or died a horrible death. Cleaning harpies will begin work at sundown. They will be authorized to eat any unregistered campers. All personal articles left behind will be incinerated in the lava pit._**

**_Have a nice day!_**

**_Mr. D (Dionysus)_**

**_Camp Director, Olympian Council #12_**

"You make a regular letter sound depressing," Demeter said. "Why?"

"Because it is," Dionysus answered. "I'd like to see you watch them for a hundred years."

**That's another thing about ADHD. Deadlines just aren't real to me until I'm staring one in the face. **

**Summer was over, and I still hadn't answered my mother, or the camp, about whether I'd be staying. Now I had only a few hours to decide.**

**The decision should have been easy. I mean, nine months of hero training or nine months of sitting in a classroom—duh.**

"Hero training," Most answered.

"Classroom," Athena and Annabeth said.

"Nerd," Travis whispered. Let's just say he was soaked and had to spit out a squid.

"Thanks," Annabeth smiled.

**But there was my mom to consider. For the first time, I had the chance to live with her for a whole year, without Gabe. I had a chance be at home and knock around the city in my free time. I remembered what Annabeth had said so long ago on our quest: ****_The real world is where the monsters are. That's where you learn whether you're any good or not._**

"Maybe I shouldn't have said that," Annabeth mumbled.

**I thought about the fate of Thalia, daughter of Zeus. I wondered how many monsters would attack me if I left Half-Blood Hill. **

"A lot," Thalia muttered.

**If I stayed in one place for a whole school year, without Chiron or my friends around to help me, would my mother and I even survive until the next summer?**

Sally frowned because of her need to be near her boy, she was putting their lives in danger.

**That was assuming the spelling tests and five-paragraph essays didn't kill me. **

"True that," Conner said.

"Idiot," Athena shook her head.

**I decided I'd go down to the arena and do some sword practice. Maybe that would clear my head.**

**The campgrounds were mostly deserted, shimmering in the August heat. All the campers were in their cabins packing up, or running around with brooms and mops, getting ready for final inspection. Argus was helping some of the Aphrodite kids haul their Gucci suitcases and makeup kits over the hill, where the camp's shuttle bus would be waiting to take them to the airport.**

Aphrodite smiled at the thought of her children.

"Gucci?" Artemis replied.

"Oh gods," Aphrodite shook her head. She looked over at Sally and Artemis. "We're definitely going shopping after the book."

**Don't think about leaving yet, I told myself. Just train.**

**I got to the sword-fighters arena and found that Luke had had the same idea. **

Hermes smiled.

**His gym bag was plopped at the edge of the stage. He was working solo, whaling on battle dummies with a sword I'd never seen before. It must've been a regular steel blade, because he was slashing the dummies' heads right off, stabbing through their straw-stuffed guts. His orange counselor's shirt was dripping with sweat. His expression was so intense, his life might've really been in danger. **

**I watched, fascinated, as he disemboweled the whole row of dummies, hacking off limbs and basically reducing them to a pile of straw and armor.**

"Kids good," Ares grunted.

Hermes beamed at the thought of his son.

**They were only dummies, but I still couldn't help being awed by Luke's skill. The guy was an incredible fighter. It made me wonder, again, how he possibly could've failed at his quest.**

**Finally, he saw me, and stopped mid-swing. "Percy."**

**"Um, sorry," I said, embarrassed. "I just—"**

**"It's okay," he said, lowering his sword. "Just doing some last-minute practice."**

**"Those dummies won't be bothering anybody any more."**

**Luke shrugged. "We build new ones every summer."**

**Now that his sword wasn't swirling around, I could see something odd about it. The blade was two different types of metal—one edge bronze, the other steel.**

"Why steel?" Jason asked.

The demigods frowned at the thought of the sword, but didn't answer.

"Interesting," Hephaestus said quietly.

**Luke noticed me looking at it. "Oh, this? New toy. This is Backbiter."**

**"Backbiter?"**

**Luke turned the blade in the light so it glinted wickedly. "One side is celestial bronze. The other is tempered steel. Works on mortals and immortals both."**

"Why would he need one for mortals?" Apollo asked.

"I'm not sure, but that shouldn't be allowed Chiron," Hera said. "It could expose our world."

_And kill mortals. _Athena thought.

Chiron nodded but at the time, he had no clue about the sword.

**I thought about what Chiron had told me when I started my quest—that a hero should never harm mortals unless absolutely necessary.**

"I doubt I fall under that category," Rachel whispered.

**"I didn't know they could make weapons like that."**

**_"They _****probably can't," Luke agreed. "It's one of a kind."**

"Yes it is," Hephaestus said. "I never made one before."

"You didn't have too," Artemis said. "Demigods don't harm mortals."

**He gave me a tiny smile, then slid the sword into its scabbard. "Listen, I was going to come looking for you. What do you say we go down to the woods one last time, look for something to fight?"**

Annabeth frowned. _This is where it's going to get bad._

"Don't go Percy," Poseidon pleaded. "Just fight with your friend in the arena."

**I don't know why I hesitated. **

**I should've felt relieved that Luke was being so friendly. Ever since I'd gotten back from the quest, he'd been acting a little distant. I was afraid he might resent me for all the attention I'd gotten.**

_Jerk. _Nico thought.

"Which he earned," Travis said, with a serious tone. "It wasn't a time to be jealous."

The demigods eyed Travis and then looked over at Conner and noticed that the normal smirk that seemed glued to their faces was replaced by a glare. A scary glare at that.

"What's up with them," Katie whispered quietly to Chris.

Chris sighed. "They really can't stand Luke after he basically disgraced our cabin."

**"You think it's a good idea?" I asked. "I mean—"**

**"Aw, come on." He rummaged in his gym bag and pulled out a six-pack of Cokes. "Drinks are on me."**

"Makes it sound like beer," Hades laughed.

**I stared at the Cokes, wondering where the heck he'd gotten them. There were no regular mortal sodas at the camp store. No way to smuggle them in unless you talked to a satyr, maybe.**

Will smiled at Grover. "Are you smuggling Grover?"

"I blame the Stolls," Grover said a little quickly.

**Of course, the magic dinner goblets would fill with anything you want, but it just didn't taste the same as a real Coke, straight out of the can.**

**Sugar and caffeine. My willpower crumbled.**

"Obviously," Thalia muttered.

**"Sure," I decided. "Why not?"**

**We walked down to the woods and kicked around for some kind of monster to fight, but it was too hot. All the monsters with any sense must've been taking siestas in their nice cool caves.**

**We found a shady spot by the creek where I'd broken Clarisse's spear during my first capture the flag game. We sat on a big rock, drank our Cokes, and watched the sunlight in the woods.**

"Sounds like they're on a date," Apollo laughed.

**After a while Luke said, "You miss being on a quest?"**

**"With monsters attacking me every three feet? Are you kidding?"**

**Luke raised an eyebrow.**

**"Yeah, I miss it," I admitted. "You?"**

"How could you possibly miss dying 24/7," Leo asked.

**A shadow passed over his face.**

**I was used to hearing from the girls how good-looking Luke was, **

Aphrodite and Hermes smirked at the demigods.

The boys glared at most girls while the girls blushed.

"I never met him," Piper said. "So don't glare at me."

"Count me out too," Rachel said. Although she's seen Luke, he was Kronos at the time for the most part, and he wasn't an eye raiser.

Clarisse shrugged. "I didn't care at the time, so whatever."

The last three were Thalia, Annabeth, and Katie who were blushing because they all thought it was true.

Thalia actually thought about Luke like that, but decided that being a hunter was way better.

Annabeth, who had found Luke attractive, had her blush vanish when she thought of Percy and realized that Luke doesn't compare to what Percy is.

Katie, on the other hand blushed because she saw a little of Travis in Luke.

**but at the moment, he looked weary, and angry, and not at all handsome. **

Hermes frowned.

**His blond hair was gray in the sunlight. The scar on his face looked deeper than usual. I could imagine him as an old man.**

**"I've lived at Half-Blood Hill year-round since I was fourteen," he told me. "Ever since Thalia ... well, you know. I trained, and trained, and trained. I never got to be a normal teenager, out there in the real world. Then they threw me one quest, and when I came back, it was like, 'Okay, ride's over. Have a nice life.'"**

Hermes frown never left as he listened to his son.

"Well then leave," Travis said, holding back the anger. "No one's forcing you to stay at camp."

The demigods nodded slowly.

"He has a point," Katie said quietly. "He knew the risks of living out in the world."

**He crumpled his Coke can and threw into the creek, which really shocked me. One of the first things you learn at Camp Half-Blood is: Don't litter. **

This time it was Grover who glared.

**You'll hear from the nymphs and the naiads. They'll get even. You'll crawl into bed one night and find your sheets filled with centipedes and mud.**

"Done that a couple times," Conner laughed.

**"The heck with laurel wreaths," Luke said. "I'm not going to end up like those dusty trophies in the Big House attic."**

**"You make it sound like you're leaving."**

**Luke gave me a twisted smile. "Oh, I'm leaving, all right, Percy. I brought you down here to say good-bye."**

Hermes didn't understand why his son was so angry.

**He snapped his fingers. A small fire burned a hole in the ground at my feet. Out crawled something glistening black, about the size of my hand. A scorpion.**

Poseidon frowned wondering what was going on.

Athena, who had been on edge for the whole conversation and the title, realized what was happening. She eyed her daughter who had a worried look on her face and knew that a shouting match was just around the corner.

**I started to go for my pen.**

**"I wouldn't," Luke cautioned. "Pit scorpions can jump up to fifteen feet. Its stinger can pierce right through your clothes. You'll be dead in sixty seconds."**

In the blink of any eye, Poseidon appeared in front of Hermes throne and grabbed him by the throat before punching him square in the face. The god of travelers didn't see the hit coming, and by the time he processed it, he was tossed off his throne onto the floor in the middle of the room.

He looked up dazed to see Poseidon walking slowly with his trident ready for an attack.

"What has my son ever done to yours," Poseidon said quietly as he walked closer.

Athena, who was worried for Hermes health, eyed her brothers, and watched as Hephaestus, Apollo, Ares, and even Dionysus held back Poseidon as he struggled in their grip.

Zeus and Hades appeared in the middle of Hermes and Poseidon and prepared of Poseidon would break his hold.

"See sense brother," Zeus said.

"Sense of what," Poseidon roared. "If he kills my son, I make sure his is tossed into the deepest parts of Tartarus."

"You will not harm him," Hermes shouted.

"Don't speak Hermes," Athena shouted. "Your son blamed my daughter for the theft when it was him all along. Not only did he betray us but he put my daughter in harm's way. You're lucky that I don't let Poseidon go."

"Please, stop fighting," Hera said. "We still have to finish reading."

The demigods, watched in awe as the gods argued.

The Stolls and Chris had mixed feelings about their dad being punched and tossed like a rag doll, but when they heard him defend Luke, they immediately understood Poseidon. He was just protecting his son, and their friend.

"So Luke's the friend that betrays Percy," Jason whispered.

"Please, let me finish reading," Hestia pleaded.

The gods nodded but didn't move from their spot. Poseidon was still held by the gods and blocked by his brothers.

**"Luke, what—"**

**Then it hit me.**

**_You will be betrayed by one who calls you a friend._**

**"You," I said.**

"Yes, him," Poseidon spat.

**He stood calmly and brushed off his jeans.**

**The scorpion paid him no attention. It kept its beady black eyes on me, clamping its pincers as it crawled onto my shoe.**

Annabeth and Thalia frowned at the mention of their old friend.

**"I saw a lot out there in the world, Percy," Luke said. "Didn't you feel it—the darkness gathering, the monsters growing stronger? Didn't you realize how useless it all is? All the heroics—being pawns of the gods. They should've been overthrown thousands of years ago, but they've hung on, thanks to us half-bloods."**

"Maybe I should let him by," Zeus said angrily.

**I couldn't believe this was happening.**

**"Luke ... you're talking about our parents," I said.**

**He laughed. "That's supposed to make me love them? Their precious 'Western civilization is a disease, Percy. It's killing the world. The only way to stop it is to burn it to the ground, start over with something more honest."**

"Smart kid," Athena spat. "Burn down what took thousands of years to build."

"He just blind," Hermes defended.

"As are you," Demeter said. "Your son is talking about destroying everything which includes some of our children, if not all of them!"

**"You're as crazy as Ares."**

"I resent that," Ares said, still holding Poseidon.

"If not crazier," Travis whispered.

**His eyes flared. "Ares is a fool. He never realized the true master he was serving. If I had time, Percy, I could explain. But I'm afraid you won't live that long."**

"Can I let go and find this kid," Ares grumbled.

**The scorpion crawled onto my pants leg.**

**There had to be a way out of this. I needed time to think.**

**"Kronos," I said. "That's who you serve."**

**The air got colder.**

**"You should be careful with names," Luke warned.**

**"Kronos got you to steal the master bolt and the helm. He spoke to you in your dreams."**

**Luke's eye twitched. "He spoke to you, too, Percy. You should've listened."**

"I'm really not liking this kid," Hades said angrily. "He stole my helm and he's working with father!"

Nico agreed with his father, as did other demigods.

Annabeth and Thalia both held back a nod, but they too we're annoyed at Luke, after hearing him say the things he said.

"Poor Percy," Piper whispered.

"Definitely not liking Luke," Leo said quietly.

**"He's brainwashing you, Luke."**

**"You're wrong. He showed me that my talents are being wasted. You know what my quest was two years ago, Percy? My father, Hermes, wanted me to steal a golden apple from the Garden of the Hesperides and return it to Olympus. After all the training I'd done, ****_that _****was the best he could think up."**

Hermes sighed.

**"That's not an easy quest," I said. "Hercules did it."**

**"Exactly," Luke said. "Where's the glory in repeating what others have done? **

"You should be lucky you even got a quest," Annabeth yelled, not able to hold back any longer. As much as she cared for Luke, he was acting like a child. "Just because someone's done something, doesn't take away the fact that you're able to accomplish something that others can't." Annabeth wanted to punch somebody, but Percy held her back.

**All the gods know how to do is replay their past. My heart wasn't in it. The dragon in the garden gave me this"—he pointed angrily at his scar—"and when I came back, all I got was pity. I wanted to pull Olympus down stone by stone right then, but I bided my time. **

Jason couldn't believe what Luke was saying. Destroying Olympus and turning on the gods just because you didn't get what you wanted was ridiculous to him.

_Where' the glory in betraying your family? _Jason thought.

**I began to dream of Kronos. He convinced me to steal something worthwhile, something no hero had ever had the courage to take. **

"That wasn't courage, it was stupidity," Clarisse said.

**When we went on that winter-solstice field trip, while the other campers were asleep, I snuck into the throne room and took Zeus's master bolt right from his chair. Hades's helm of darkness, too. You wouldn't believe how easy it was. The Olympians are so arrogant; they never dreamed someone would dare steal from them. **

Zeus and Hades walked slowly back to their thrones and left an open lane straight at Hermes.

"You're boy isn't worth protecting Hermes," Hades said. "Turning on us and serving father is and will be the final straw for me."

**Their security is horrible. I was halfway across New Jersey before I heard the storms rumbling, and I knew they'd discovered my theft."**

**The scorpion was sitting on my knee now, staring at me with its glittering eyes. I tried to keep my voice level. "So why didn't you bring the items to Kronos?"**

**Luke's smile wavered. "I ... I got overconfident. Zeus sent out his sons and daughters to find the stolen bolt— Artemis, Apollo, my father, Hermes. But it was Ares who caught me.**

Ares smiled.

**I could have beaten him, but I wasn't careful enough. **

"So wish punk," Ares grunted. "Fish face might have, but he had water, you on the other hand got nothing on me."

**He disarmed me, took the items of power, threatened to return them to Olympus and burn me alive. Then Kronos's voice came to me and told me what to say. I put the idea in Ares's head about a great war between the gods. I said all he had to do was hide the items away for a while and watch the others fight. Ares got a wicked gleam in his eyes. I knew he was hooked. **

Clarisse glared at the thought of Luke manipulating her father.

Athena sighed. "He used Ares's flaw against him." She looked over at her daughter. "As much as it pains me to say this, you can't hold this over Ares's head."

Ares nodded in agreement, but Zeus waved it off. He was going to deal with it later.

**He let me go, and I returned to Olympus before anyone noticed my absence." Luke drew his new sword. He ran his thumb down the flat of the blade, as if he were hypnotized by its beauty. "Afterward, the Lord of the Titans ... h-he punished me with nightmares. I swore not to fail again. Back at Camp Half-Blood, in my dreams, I was told that a second hero would arrive, one who could be tricked into taking the bolt and the helm the rest of the way—from Ares down to Tartarus."**

**"****_You _****summoned the hellhound, that night in the forest."**

Poseidon glared harder.

**"We had to make Chiron think the camp wasn't safe for you, so he would start you on your quest. We had to confirm his fears that Hades was after you. And it worked."**

Chiron shook his head.

**"The flying shoes were cursed," I said. "They were supposed to drag me and the backpack into Tartarus."**

**"And they would have, if you'd been wearing them. But you gave them to the satyr, which wasn't part of the plan. Grover messes up everything he touches. He even confused the curse."**

"Watch it Luke," Thalia snapped.

Grover stared down a little ashamed about Luke's comment.

"Don't listen to him Grover," Clarisse spoke up surprising the demigods. "Just because Luke's whining doesn't mean he's right."

"Which he isn't," Annabeth said. "Everyone messes up, look at Luke, he's doing it now."

Grover smiled a little but still felt down.

**Luke looked down at the scorpion, which was now sit ting on my thigh. "You should have died in Tartarus, Percy. But don't worry, I'll leave you with my little friend to set things right."**

_You wish Luke. _Nico thought.

**"Thalia gave her life to save you," I said, gritting my teeth. "And this is how you repay her?"**

**"Don't speak of Thalia!" he shouted. "The gods ****_let _****her die! That's one of the many things they will pay for."**

Thalia frowned. "Not like that. And definitely not by killing one off my best friends."

**"You're being used, Luke. You and Ares both. Don't listen to Kronos."**

**_"I've _****been used?" Luke's voice turned shrill. "Look at yourself. **

"Says the one that takes orders from someone who beats them in their dreams," Conner snapped. "Real buddy you have there."

Hermes eyed his sons and noticed that they all had glares etched on their faces. _They all see what he's done. Why can't I?_

**What has your dad ever done for you? Kronos will rise. You've only delayed his plans. He will cast the Olympians into Tartarus and drive humanity back to their caves. All except the strongest—the ones who serve him."**

"He's insane," Apollo said.

**"Call off the bug," I said. "If you're so strong, fight me yourself."**

**Luke smiled. "Nice try, Percy. But I'm not Ares. You can't bait me. **

_Too bad. _Most thought.

**My lord is waiting, and he's got plenty of quests for me to undertake."**

"So that isn't considered being used?" Katie asked, with a slight tone, which was a first.

**"Luke—"**

**"Good-bye, Percy. There is a new Golden Age coming. You won't be part of it."**

"We'll see about that," Poseidon said.

**He slashed his sword in an arc and disappeared in a ripple of darkness.**

**The scorpion lunged.**

**I swatted it away with my hand and uncapped my sword. The thing jumped at me and I cut it in half in midair.**

Most sighed in relief.

**I was about to congratulate myself until I looked down at my hand. My palm had a huge red welt, oozing and smoking with yellow guck. The thing had gotten me after all.**

Annabeth frowned. She hated seeing him hurt, well, reading about him getting hurt.

"I'll kill him for this," Poseidon spat.

**My ears pounded. My vision went foggy. The water, I thought. It healed me before.**

Poseidon's eyes widened. _Yes Percy, go to the water._

**I stumbled to the creek and submerged my hand, but nothing seemed to happen. The poison was too strong. My vision was getting dark. I could barely stand up.**

Annabeth had her head in Percy's chest was silently crying.

**_Sixty seconds, _****Luke had told me.**

**I had to get back to camp. If I collapsed out here, my body would be dinner for a monster. Nobody would ever know what had happened.**

**My legs felt like lead. My forehead was burning. I stumbled toward the camp, and the nymphs stirred from their trees.**

**"Help," I croaked. "Please ..."**

**Two of them took my arms, pulling me along. **

"That was close," Piper sighed.

"Too close," Annabeth mumbled.

**I remember making it to the clearing, a counselor shouting for help, a centaur blowing a conch horn.**

**Then everything went black.**

**I woke with a drinking straw in my mouth. I was sipping something that tasted like liquid chocolate-chip cookies. Nectar.**

**I opened my eyes.**

**I was propped up in bed in the sickroom of the Big House, my right hand bandaged like a club. Argus stood guard in the corner. Annabeth sat next to me, holding my nectar glass and dabbing a washcloth on my forehead.**

**"Here we are again," I said.**

**"You idiot," Annabeth said, which is how I knew she was overjoyed to see me conscious.**

"I was," Annabeth smiled. Percy hugged her closer.

"You have a funny way of showing it," Rachel laughed.

**"You were green and turning gray when we found you. If it weren't for Chiron's healing ..."**

"Thank you Chiron," Poseidon thanked him.

Chiron nodded. He was just glad he got to Percy in time.

**"Now, now," Chiron's voice said. "Percy's constitution deserves some of the credit."**

**He was sitting near the foot of my bed in human form, which was why I hadn't noticed him yet. His lower half was magically compacted into the wheelchair, his upper half dressed in a coat and tie. He smiled, but his face looked weary and pale, the way it did when he'd been up all night grading Latin papers.**

**"How are you feeling?" he asked.**

**"Like my insides have been frozen, then microwaved."**

"Another interesting comparison that we will never fully understand," Will smiled.

**"Apt, considering that was pit scorpion venom. Now you must tell me, if you can, exactly what happened."**

**Between sips of nectar, I told them the story.**

**The room was quiet for a long time.**

**"I can't believe that Luke ..." Annabeth's voice faltered. Her expression turned angry and sad. "Yes. Yes, I ****_can _****believe it. May the gods curse him... He was never the same after his quest."**

Annabeth nodded, knowing she was right.

"So he did this just because he had a bad quest?" Leo asked. "Seems a little…um childish."

"Not just because of that," Annabeth explained. "The other books will explain with more detail."

**"This must be reported to Olympus," Chiron murmured. "I will go at once."**

**"Luke is out there right now," I said. "I have to go after him."**

**Chiron shook his head. "No, Percy. The gods—"**

**"Won't even ****_talk _****about Kronos," I snapped. "Zeus declared the matter closed!"**

"He's right," Hera said.

**"Percy, I know this is hard. But you must not rush out for vengeance. You aren't ready."**

"And he's right again," Poseidon said. "As much as I would want Hermes son punished, Percy isn't ready yet."

**I didn't like it, but part of me suspected Chiron was right.**

"Chiron's always right," Thalia smiled at him.

Chiron smiled back at her.

**One look at my hand, and I knew I wasn't going to be sword fighting any time soon. "Chiron ... your prophecy from the Oracle ... it was about Kronos, wasn't it? Was I in it? And Annabeth?"**

"The Great Prophecy," Apollo said. "It's happening now?"

The demigods didn't answer as the gods stared a little uneasy.

**Chiron glanced nervously at the ceiling. "Percy, it isn't my place—"**

**"You've been ordered not to talk to me about it, haven't you?"**

"Precisely," Zeus said.

**His eyes were sympathetic, but sad. "You will be a great hero, child. I will do my best to prepare you. But if I'm right about the path ahead of you …"**

**Thunder boomed overhead, rattling the windows.**

**"All right!" Chiron shouted. "Fine!"**

"Even Chiron has his outbursts," Chris laughed.

**He sighed in frustration. "The gods have their reasons, Percy. Knowing too much of your future is never a good thing."**

**"We can't just sit back and do nothing," I said.**

**"****_We _****will not sit back," Chiron promised. "But ****_you _****must be careful. Kronos wants you to come unraveled. He wants your life disrupted, your thoughts clouded with fear and anger. Do not give him what he wants. Train patiently. Your time will come."**

**"Assuming I live that long."**

"You will," Poseidon said confidently. "I'll be watching."

**Chiron put his hand on my ankle. "You'll have to trust me, Percy. You will live. But first you must decide your path for the coming year. I cannot tell you the right choice..." I got the feeling that he had a very definite opinion, and it was taking all his willpower not to advise me. **

"I only wanted what was best," Chiron said quietly.

**"But you must decide whether to stay at Camp Half-Blood year-round, or return to the mortal world for seventh grade and be a summer camper. Think on that. When I get back from Olympus, you must tell me your decision."**

**I wanted to protest. I wanted to ask him more questions. But his expression told me there could be no more discussion; he had said as much as he could.**

**"I'll be back as soon as I can," Chiron promised. "Argus will watch over you."**

**He glanced at Annabeth. "Oh, and, my dear ... when ever you're ready, they're here."**

"What's he talking about?" Rachel asked.

**"Who's here?" I asked.**

**Nobody answered.**

"Hate it when that happens," Nico muttered.

**Chiron rolled himself out of the room. I heard the wheels of his chair clunk carefully down the front steps, two at a time.**

**Annabeth studied the ice in my drink.**

**"What's wrong?" I asked her.**

**"Nothing." She set the glass on the table. "I … just took your advice about something. You … um … need anything?"**

"You actually took his advice?" Thalia snickered.

**"Yeah. Help me up. I want to go outside."**

**"Percy, that isn't a good idea."**

**I slid my legs out of bed. Annabeth caught me before I could crumple to the floor. A wave of nausea rolled over me.**

**"I'm fine," I insisted. I didn't want to lie in bed like an invalid while Luke was out there planning to destroy the Western world.**

"Stubborn," Zeus said. He eyed Poseidon. "Just like his father."

"Good," Poseidon smiled. He was still standing, but the gods had let go and stood near him just in case. Hermes sat in his throne eyeing the gods in the middle just in case.

**I managed a step forward. Then another, still leaning heavily on Annabeth. Argus followed us outside, but he kept his distance.**

**By the time we reached the porch, my face was beaded with sweat. My stomach had twisted into knots. But I had managed to make it all the way to the railing.**

**It was dusk. The camp looked completely deserted. The cabins were dark and the volleyball pit silent. No canoes cut the surface of the lake. Beyond the woods and the strawberry fields, the Long Island Sound glittered in the last light of the sun.**

**"What are you going to do?" Annabeth asked me.**

**"I don't know."**

**I told her I got the feeling Chiron wanted me to stay year-round, to put in more individual training time, but I wasn't sure that's what I wanted. I admitted I'd feel bad about leaving her alone, though, with only Clarisse for company….**

"I'm good company," Clarisse argued.

"When?" Leo asked. "When you aren't trying to kill us?"

**Annabeth pursed her lips, then said quietly, "I'm going home for the year, Percy."**

**I stared at her. "You mean, to our dad's?"**

**She pointed toward the crest of Half-Blood Hill. Next to Thalia's pine tree, at the very edge of the camp's magical boundaries, a family stood silhouetted—two little children, a woman, and a tall man with blond hair. They seemed to be waiting. The man was holding a backpack that looked like the one Annabeth had gotten from Waterland in Denver.**

**"I wrote him a letter when we got back," Annabeth said. "Just like you suggested. I told him ... I was sorry. I'd come home for the school year if he still wanted me. He wrote back immediately. We decided ... we'd give it another try."**

Athena smiled at her daughter. "I'm proud of you Annabeth."

"Yeah," Thalia said. "That took guts."

**"That took guts."**

"Oh gods," Thalia paled.

"You should be glad to think like me. If I'm correct, I saved you many times." Thalia just glared.

**She pursed her lips. "You won't try anything stupid during the school year, will you? At least … not without sending me an Iris-message?"**

**I managed a smile. "I won't go looking for trouble. I usually don't have to."**

"He's right about that," Nico smiled.

**"When I get back next summer," she said, "we'll hunt down Luke. We'll ask for a quest, but if we don't get approval, we'll sneak off and do it anyway. Agreed?"**

"Great," Athena sighed. She eyed Poseidon. "Our children are going to team up and take on another quest."

Poseidon smiled. "They won't be alone."

Annabeth smiled at Athena and Poseidon's reaction, and found herself shaking her head at the foreshadowing on the fact that they did sneak out.

**"Sounds like a plan worthy of Athena."**

Athena shook her head but smiled a little.

**She held out her hand. I shook it.**

"What?" Aphrodite said shocked. "No goodbye hug or kiss!"

Annabeth blushed but shook her head.

**"Take care, Seaweed Brain," Annabeth told me. "Keep your eyes open."**

**"You too, Wise Girl."**

"Such cute nicknames," Thalia teased. Percy, who has matured a lot, stuck out his tongue.

**I watched her walk up the hill and join her family. She gave her father an awkward hug and looked back at the valley one last time. She touched Thalia's pine tree, then allowed herself to be lead over the crest and into the mortal world.**

**For the first time at camp, I felt truly alone. **

"He misses you," Aphrodite said sweetly.

Annabeth smiled as the others laughed quietly.

**I looked out at Long Island Sound and I remembered my father saying, ****_The sea does not like to be restrained._**

**I made my decision.**

**I wondered, if Poseidon were watching, would he approve of my choice?**

"I'm sure I would," Poseidon said.

**"I'll be back next summer," I promised him. "I'll survive until then. After all, I am your son." I asked Argus to take me down to cabin three, so I could pack my bags for home.**

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LONGEST CHAPTER EVER! One more chapter, and then it's on to the next book.


	36. LAST CHAPTER WHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

**Hello my loyal readers! I am alive if you did not hear. This is the last chapter for the first book! I would like to thank ALL of my loyal readers who review. I want to give a special shout out to Princess of Wisdom Annabeth Chase! You guys need to check out her stories. Okay, enough of me blabbing LET"S GET THE LAST CHAPTER UP SO I CAN START THE SECOND BOOK! WHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEeeeeeeeeeeee eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee eeeeee!**

* * *

**Percy's POV**

We just finished the first book, and everybody was about to go to sleep when a flash appeared and five people came.

"I am Apollo from the future. I am here to take the younger ones back and most of the demigods. If I call your name, you will be staying. Percy, Annabeth, Thalia, Jason, Piper, Leo, Frank, Hazel, and Nico. The four demigods next to me will introduce themselves when I leave. YO! WASSUP YOUNGER ME! Goodbye."

"I am Theseus son of Poseidon."

"Hercules, son of Zeus."

"Perseus, son of Zeus."

"Orion, son of Poseidon."

"Perseus Jackson, Son of Poseidon, hero of Olympus, Slayer of the Minotaur twice, one of the seven, and wonderful boyfriend to," that's when Annabeth put her hand over my mouth.

"Was that necessary?" she asked me.

"No, but I felt like it." She just rolled her eyes.

"Annabeth Chase, daughter of Athena, Heroine of Olympus, one of the seven."

"Thalia Grace, daughter of Zeus, heroine of Olympus, Lieutenant of Artemis."

"Nico di Angelo, son of Hades, Ghost King, hero of Olympus."

"Jason Grace, son of Jupiter, one of the seven."

"Piper Mclean, daughter of Aphrodite, one of the seven."

"Leo Valdez, son of Hephaestus, one of the seven."

"Frank Zhang, son of Mars, descendant of Poseidon, one of the seven."

"Hazel Lavesque, daughter of Pluto, one of the seven."

"What are we doing here?" Orion asked.

"We are reading books about my incredibly stupid, full of seaweed boyfriend." Annabeth replied.

"You know you love me." I flashed her a smile.

"Why is a daughter of Athena dating a son of Poseidon?" Hercules sneered.

"Because they love each other." Aphrodite squealed."

"Well, it's late, bedtime." And we all went off to bed. In the middle of the night, Annabeth had a nightmare and came into my room and she fell asleep in my arms, soon, I fell asleep.


End file.
